Kingdom Hearts: Rise Above The X

by CryptidGrimnoir137

In the weeks following the Second Keyblade War, Axel has made a quiet life in Twilight Town with Roxas and Xion. But a quiet life and wielding a Keyblade aren't exactly compatible. Axel is still haunted by those he couldn't save. Roxas and Xion have questions too, as usual. With new powers, they'll find the answers. Whatever's out there, the three of them will face together.

94. Chapter 94

Chapter Ninety Four: Island Invasion

A/N: I do not own Kingdom Hearts. It is the property of Square Enix and the Walt Disney Company.

I do not own The Dresden Files. It is the property of Jim Butcher.

This is a creative work that I do not profit off of in any way.

Hello, hello, hello my dearest readers. I am truly sorry that this chapter took so long to get out to you, but here it is!

Enjoy…

oooo

Standing at the edge of the porch,Naminé stared out at the sea. It was mid-afternoon and the sun was warm on her skin. The planks making up the porch were sturdy and stable beneath her sandals.

"Tanaka," Naminé said, though her voice wasn't really audible over the gentle waves pressing against shore. "My name is Naminé Tanaka…my father is Tyson Tanaka. My sister is Kairi Tanaka."

Saying it out loud still sounded strange, even to herself and without anyone to contradict her. Tyson…Daddy…was in the office today. He had been staying there longer than normal the last few days, to make up for the paperwork that had piled up while they'd gone to check in with Roxas and Xion and Kairi. Oh…Daddy had been so worried. And seeing them, jittery and with half-healed injuries had been awful. It wasn't fair that they kept having to go into battle. It wasn't the least bit fair…nothing had been fair for any of them.

It hadn't been fair that Kairi had been ripped away from her home in Radiant Garden and sent out across the cosmos—however wonderful Daddy was to her. And it wasn't fair that Roxas and Xion, for no other crime than existing had been forced to return to Sora. They were back now. They had their own lives and their own bodies, but that didn't mean things were fair. Was it fair for them to be forced to their breaking points, over and over and over and over again?

"But what can I do to help?" Naminé asked herself. "Nothing seems to be working…they just keep fighting and fighting. They never get to rest."

She concentrated on the waves crashing down on the shoreline. The water looked bluer today than it had yesterday and the sand looked yellower than it usually did. Naminé bit her lip. She had always wanted to be able to go out on the shoreline, to spend time on the beach. She stepped down from the porch, slipping off her sandals and setting them by the first step. It wasn't quite sand underneath her bare soles now, but it wasn't regular road either. Naminé closed her eyes and began walking towards the sea. In a few steps, the ground that wasn't quite sand and not quite road became sandier and sandier. A few more steps and the sand was soft between her toes. The sand was as warm on her feet as the sun was on her back. It almost made her want to laugh…

Naminé opened her eyes. The waves of the ocean were constant. They went in and they went out and the scene of salt was almost constant. But it wasn't constant, not really. The tides moved and twisted around and Daddy had shown her each wave was different. As different as snowflakes were from one another. The waves sounded alive, in a way, and as she got closer to the edge of the water, the sand became damper and pressed more tightly together. She could feel the water lap at the tips of her toes.

She had wanted this. More than anything else, when she had been trapped in Castle Oblivion, under the thumb of Marluxia and Larxene, and then again with DiZ, she had wanted friendship. She had wanted people who appreciated her company for the sake of company. People to laugh with and play with and just…be with. That was one of the reasons why she had done what she had done with Sora, however much her conscience tormented her. And she had wanted the beach. She had wanted the sand and the ocean waters. She had wanted to wade barefoot in the shallows and look for seashells. That was something she did get to do now and it was something she enjoyed. The sand tickled and sometimes, it almost felt like a hug. She wanted to try and make friends with a seagull—Kairi had done that once, when she was a little girl. Naminé hadn't had as much luck not scaring the seagulls away. She had wanted to try to obstacle course that Sora and Riku had built—that hadn't worked out so well either: Naminé wasn't very good at jumping yet.

But it was a life. It was dinners with Daddy and card games—cribbage, mostly, but also blackjack and poker. It was strange, doing those things without Kairi to act as a middleman, but it was still fun. And Daddy never complained when Naminé woke up crying from a nightmare. There was a level of peace there. Peace and acceptance…Naminé had never even dared to dream that she'd have a friend. Having a father was something that was beyond her comprehension.

Naminé closed her eyes again. Kairi had been willing to share Daddy with her without question. Kairi had told her to stay behind, stay where it was safe, while she risked her life fighting Maleficent's forces. Kairi was so good and so brave…braver than Naminé would ever be.

Her heart felt heavy and it occurred to Naminé that she could actually go into town and talk to Tyson about what was bothering her. Or at least say hello. Even if he was busy, knowing that he was alright and was there would be enough. Naminé walked back up to where she had left her sandals and stepped back into them. If Kairi were here, Naminé realized with a smile, she'd probably take her by the wrist and drag her all the way to Daddy's office without even giving her a chance to put her sandals on.

Naminé walked slowly down the path. As she walked, she felt her stomach grow tighter. Why was that? Was she afraid that Daddy would be annoyed that she'd come to check in…if he was busy, he might not want to be disturbed. Maybe he would even get angry. The last thing in the world that Naminé wanted was for him to be angry. This was a bad idea…maybe she should just go home and take a nap…anything that would keep herself from being a bother.

Naminé shifted her sandals against the road, scraping gently. Naminé began to rub her arm as she got nearer a bench. She could see Tidus, Wakka and Selpie in the distance, but she wasn't sure she wanted to talk to them yet. It seemed too easy for any conversation to devolve into Where's Kairi? and Whatever happened to Sora? And besides…they were Kairi's friends. Naminé didn't know them that well yet…of course, if Kairi were here, she'd probably have marched Naminé straight over to them and insisted they find something that they had in common. Classic Kairi…if it was for the betterment of someone, there's nothing she wouldn't do to ensure it.

There was a breeze blowing and it swept up Naminé 's hair. Breezes weren't uncommon on the Destiny Islands, but they tended to come from the east. This wind was coming from the west, right into her face, where the sun was still on her back. And the wind was colder than most breezes were. Naminé felt a chill go down her spine.

A moment later, a portal appeared in front of her. Naminé 's mouth fell open and her first thought was of Dark Corridors. But this wasn't the right color for a Dark Corridor. It was white and a little bit of gold. It almost looked like the sun. And then…Roxas stepped out of it. Naminé gasped. Roxas looked dreadful. His face was bruised and his lip was swollen and he was wearing Keyblade Armor, but it wasn't like any armor she had seen before. It was shining and white, like the portal, but as he dismissed his armor, Naminé realized that Roxas's jacket and shirt had tears in them.

"Naminé ," Roxas said, running up to hug her. "You're alright. Thank goodness…"

"Of course, I'm alright," Naminé said. She leaned her head against Roxas's shoulder. "It's great to see you…what happened?"

"Maleficent," Roxas said. "And Seifer…and I'm not sure who else. Maleficent said she was coming to the place where it all started…and well…"

"This is the first place you thought of," Naminé said, her hand moving to her mouth. "Oh no…oh no, nothing's happened here…not yet."

"Yet," Roxas repeated. He looked over his shoulder—the portal was still there, shimmering and glimmering. It was one of the prettiest things that Naminé had ever seen, but also one of the scariest. "She could already be here though…"

"Roxas, where's everyone else?" Naminé said, not quite able to keep the quiver from her voice. "Xion? Axel? Kairi?"

No sooner had she asked this then another portal opened up—the exact same white and gold spirals. Xion came stumbling out of it. She looked frazzled and her lip was bleeding, but she gripped Kingdom Key so tightly, her knuckles were white. Naminé gave her an uneasy smile that Xion tried to return, but it only made her lip bloodier. Naminé tried not to stare and a moment later, Axel and Kairi marched out of Xion's portal. As soon as they were through, Roxas held up Oathkeeper and Oblivion to seal the portals.

"She's here," Axel said, as Kairi flung her arms around Naminé . "There's no way she isn't here…we need to find your dad. You guys have hurricanes here, right? Maybe we can get some people into one of those storm shelter thingies."

"Is there anything I can do?" Naminé asked as Kairi let her go. She had an urge to run her fingers through Kairi's hair. Kairi looked nearly as exhausted as Roxas and Xion did. The thought of her still having to fight was scary. "I don't have a Keyblade."

"Pray for us, kiddo," Axel said, rotating his wrist. "I've got a very bad feeling about all this."

oooo

Tyson Tanaka ran his fingers through his hair. There wasn't a lot of paperwork to focus on, all things considered, but his head wasn't in the game. It wasn't as if his job was particularly demanding, even with the three days he'd lost on the visit to Twilight Town. Make sure the shipping lanes were clear, the fishing lines were maintained, the infrastructure for the power grid remained stable…but so long as everyone did their job, that meant that Tyson didn't actually have very much to do. The islands under his governance—if you could even call it that—were very relaxed. People worked and lived and loved but very little actually changed…the threat of a shipwreck was a constant, but every vessel that was sanctioned for actually being on the open seas also had a dedicated crew that followed a seaman's code. To provide rescue to the best of one's ability. People here took care of each other. It was one of the things he liked about the islands.

It was also one of the things he did not like about other worlds. The very idea that there were other worlds in itself was staggering. Hammerheads and manta rays! It was hard enough to think about the mainland. Tyson wasn't sure if there was some sort of hidden, latent magic in the water here, but he often caught himself nearly forgetting that there was anywhere else but the islands he managed. Tyson paused. That could explain a fair bit.

"Tyson?"

Tyson startled and looked up. His secretary—a college-aged girl named —poked her head through the office door. Yuna. She was taller than his daughters, with hair the color of a ginger root. Yuna gave him a polite nod and smiled.

"Your daughter wants to speak with you," Yuna said. "Both daughters, I should say."

"Naminé ? Kairi?!" Tyson asked. "Send them in, please."

Yuna nodded and walked back to her desk, stopping only to set on her headphones—she always had liked listening to music while she worked. A moment later, Naminé came in on trembling legs. Following her were Roxas and Xion and Kairi…no sign of Lea—Axel—eh, whatever. Kairi immediately ran up and threw her arms around him. Tyson closed his eyes and ran his fingers through Kairi's hair. He had missed this…he had missed her. He pressed his lips to the top of her head.

"What's going on?" Tyson asked, letting Kairi go. "I suspect this isn't a social call."

"Bad things are happening," Kairi said. "Scary things…like before. Remember the storm?"

Storms weren't uncommon on the islands, but Tyson knew that Kairi wasn't just talking about a regular thunderstorm or squall. Or, God forbid, a hurricane. She meant one of those darkness storms. Tyson would never forget the storm that had covered the sky with unnatural darkness that had wrecked his world. Even if it had been restored, the thought still lingered. The thought of his world being lost again was unfathomable.

"Daddy, you need to get everyone to evacuate to the storm shelter," Kairi said, whispering into his ear. "Maleficent is here…somewhere…"

Maleficent…hammerheads! That was the name of the witch that had started all this. The witch who controlled the Heartless, the monsters that had taken his home…the witch that had taken his daughter away…Tyson felt an urge to grab a wooden stake and drive it through Maleficent's heart. But then the more logical side of Tyson's mind pointed out that such a tactic would probably not work, since it would have surely have been tried by now. He glanced down at Kairi who was trying to keep her composure. Roxas and Xion looked exhausted and Xion's arm was glowing green…had she been injured and cast healing magic on herself? The poor dear…

Never mind, Tyson shook his head, trying to concentrate. Speculation was all well and good, but it didn't mean that things were actually being fixed. There was trouble for his town and that had to be dealt with. But he also had to make sure that he didn't cause a panic. There were only a handful of citizens who knew the true nature of other worlds. The last thing anyone needed was for the people to panic because of an "alien invasion."

"I have an idea," Tyson said. "I'll organize a drill for the town. We're overdue for one anyway, so in a way, this might be a good thing. Don't worry, sweetie, there should be plenty of room for all of you. Wait a moment, where's Axel? He's not in trouble, is he?"

"All of us? No, I meant everyone but us," Kairi said, shaking her little head. She looked up at Tyson with eyes, bloodshot with fatigue. "Axel's at the vending machine, but he's fine…mostly."

"Wow! Double chocolate-caramel gummy balls! I didn't think they still made these!"

A moment later, Axel walked into the office, clutching the wrapper of his candy. His jacket was torn on one of the sleeves, but for the most part, he looked whole. Yuna looked up from her own desk and flashed Axel a smile. Axel, for his part, didn't seem to have noticed. He swallowed hard and then gave Tyson a firm nod.

"Alright," Tyson said. "Let me see…we'll have to go to the guard station…"

xxxx

The guard station was a short walk from the town office, which suited Tyson fine. He was so nervous, he could hardly see straight. He led the others down the path and found one of the crewmen who worked the station. Yoshi—Tyson could't recall whether that was the man's first name or surname, but it was what everyone in town called him. Yoshi was probably Axel's age, with silver hair.

"Mayor Tanaka?" Yoshi asked. "You want to run the hurricane drill? But why? It isn't hurricane season."

"That's precisely why we should run the drill, Yoshi," Tyson said. "Now come on, time's a wasting."

Yoshi raised an eyebrow skeptically but then shrugged and began flicking switches and knobs on one of the larger radios. A half dozen other workers came in from various positions and lined up in front of it. Yoshi flicked one more switch and there was a distinctive chiming ringing throughout the building. Tyson took a seat and cleared his throat. He had a sort of talent for public speaking. It had served him well enough as mayor.

"Hello everyone," Tyson said. "I hope you are all doing well. I need you to listen to me carefully. What is about to commence is a drilled broadcast of our emergency alert system. Please treat this as seriously as you would an actual emergency and report to the storm shelters quickly and quietly."

Tyson sighed. He wasn't as good at this as he used to be, but then again, this wasn't actually a hurricane drill. He flicked one more switch and the alarm began to blare. It was distinct from the alarms used for stranded or sinking ships and distinct from the alarm that they used for rafts of jellyfish that occasionally glided through the waters right off the shoreline.

Fwwoon! Fwwoon! Fwwoon!

"Alright, people," Tyson said, nodding at Yoshi and the other workers. "Time to head to the storm shelter."

"Sir?" one of the workers, a young woman named Tia, asked. "We're supposed to stay at our stations, even in a drill."

"And I'm overriding that," Tyson said firmly. He glanced at Kairi and Naminé …and at Roxas, Xion and Axel. Naminé was still trembling and the other four were bracing themselves for whatever fight was sure to come. "All of you, the hurricane storm shelters, now!"

Given how well-behaved Kairi was on a general basis—and how she had always been quick to tattle on herself whenever she did something she thought might have been wrong (and it never actually was)—Tyson wasn't sure how effective he was as an authoritarian. Raising his voice in a disciplinary tone wasn't something he had a lot of experience in. But Yoshi and Tia simply nodded and rose to their feet. The other workers did the same, but one, a boy barely older than Kairi paused.

"Daichi?"

"What about the ships out at sea?" Daichi asked. "The fishermen and lobstermen and everyone else? They wouldn't know about the drill. Maybe I should stay behind to let them know."

"Daichi, do you know how far the alarm travels?" Tyson asked. "The radio frequency should be being replayed to everyone at sea, and there's the emergency lights that will be shining too."

Daichi still looked unsure, but before he could say any more on the matter, Yoshi and Tia grabbed his hands and began dragging him outside. Tyson turned back around, just in time for Kairi to hug him again. Naminé hesitated and then wrapped her arms around him as well. Tyson could barely hear Kairi's whispering over the pounding in his head.

"Be safe Daddy…"

The urge to grab Kairi and drag her into the storm shelter was over-powering, but Tyson also realized that it wouldn't be the least bit effective, since Kairi had a Keyblade of her own. He'd need to evacuate to the storm shelter himself—and bring Naminé with him. But that did not mean he couldn't spare a few seconds to look at his wonderful daughter.

oooo

Fwoon! Fwoon! Fwoon!

"So that's the storm shelter," Roxas muttered, looking up the hill towards the building. It was made of stone and there weren't any trees on the hill. It was a little jarring compared to the rest of the hills, absolutely covered in the lush trees and flowers that flourished on the rest of the island. Even the areas that were set aside specifically for the electric grid had some nice flower bushes and shrubs planted around them.

What was worse than the storm shelter itself was the throng of people walking up to it, in twos and threes. It was a start, but it wasn't nearly enough. There had to be more people than that living on the island. Roxas nodded at Tyson as he and Naminé walked towards the shelter. Naminé was gripping Tyson's hand so tightly, she was barely walking in her own right. Roxas's stomach twitched. That was Kairi's family being safe…but what about Sora's?

"Anyone see Amaya or Benjiro?" Roxas asked. He flexed his fingers and thought for a moment. Benjiro was probably out on his boat Gallahad. But Amaya worked on the islands…at the library. Unless she wasn't working today, which would mean that she'd be home…

Home…

Maleficent said that she'd be going back to where it all started. And where better than that than Sora's childhood home? Where he had learned to walk, learned to read, learned to swim…all the things that made Sora, Sora.

Roxas broke into a run, in the opposite direction as the people moving along to the storm shelter. He knew the path, even if he'd only been on this island one other time. He knew it like the back of his own hand. Past the little shop where Hoshi sold tacos, past the courthouse where Naminé had officially been adopted by Tyson…past Riku's house…there! The little house with the brass bell on the fence post. The garden filled with sunflowers and shion…Sora's house. Roxas ran faster and harder, gritting his teeth. He could not let anything happen…not to Amaya. Not after all that she'd done for him and Xion. And what she'd done for Sora.

Roxas's ability to recall what Sora remembered wasn't always very strong. But he knew the islands. And he knew Sora's family. He knew how much Sora loved his mom, even if he didn't mention it to Donald and Goofy much. Roxas could remember all the times Amaya had helped Sora bake cookies…all the times they had eaten breakfast together…when he closed his eyes, he could almost hear Sora's laughter and see his cocky smile.

"Amaya!" Roxas shouted, yanking the door open. He looked left and right, but there was no sign of her. "Amaya!"

"Amaya?" Xion called from the bottom of the steps. Roxas glanced back at her. He hadn't even realized that she had kept pace with him. Axel and Kairi were way behind them. Xion bit her lip but then cupped her hands to her mouth, "Mom?"

It was strange hearing Xion say the word Mom, but at the same time, it felt sort of right. Amaya was Sora's mother and that sort of made her their mother too.

"Roxas!"

Roxas turned around and saw Amaya trotting up to the house, carrying a large box of books. She looked just the same as she always did…the same warm face, the same black hair…with three pencils stuck into it. One pencil was red, one pencil was yellow and one pencil was as black as Amaya's hair.

"What a lovely surprise," Amaya said, her smiling spreading so widely, it nearly broke her face in half. "I was so worried about you after what happened in Twilight Town…what brings you here?"

"There's no time to explain," Xion said. "We need to get you out of here, Mom. Where's Dad?"

"Out on his boat, of course," Amaya said, setting the box of books down. "Is there something wrong?"

"There's a lot of stuff that's wrong," Roxas said, shaking his head. "But Xion's right—we need to get you to the storm shelter."

"The storm shelter?" Amaya paused. "I didn't hear the alarm…why wouldn't I have heard the siren?"

Roxas wasn't sure what the answer to that was—there had definitely been a siren sounding when Tyson had first given his message over the radio, but it had stopped and he wasn't sure when it had stopped. There were still flashing lights coming from the guard station, but Roxas wasn't sure how conspicuous those were in comparison. If Amaya hadn't heard the siren…could something have happened to it?

"We're burning daylight," Axel pointed out, as he came up to them. Kairi, standing next to him, swallowed and looked over her shoulder. "Let's get moving."

"Of course," Amaya said. "You can tell me on the way."

They set off again and Roxas could see more people starting to make their way to the stone shelter at the top of the hill. But he could also see people who hadn't started moving there yet. He recognized some of Sora's other friends. Tidus and Wakka were lagging behind Selphie, tossing their blitzball back and forth. Roxas bit his cheek in frustration, but Amaya saw them as well and her eyes narrowed.

"And just what do you three think you're doing?" Amaya asked, putting her hands on her hips. "Run along now, the emergency lights are flashing! You can play with the ball later—now shake a leg!"

"We're goin', we're goin'," Wakka said with a grin. "But c'mon on, Missus Sora's Mom, we've had these drills since we was little kids. It's never that big a deal."

"It is too a big deal!" Amaya argued, cuffing Wakka on the side of his head. "Now move it! Wakka, I know your parents are going to be furious if you don't move your butt to the storm shelter. You too, Tidus, Selphie. Now, march!"

Amaya glared and Wakka and Tidus starting running up the path. Selphie started skipping to keep up with them. Roxas scratched the back of his head. He could still see the storm shelter in the distance, but there was something else nagging at the back of his mind.

"There's something I can't put my finger on," Roxas said. "Something feels wrong about all this…"

"Roxas?"

Roxas turned his head and his mouth fell open in surprise. Riku was standing at the front of his family's house. He looked a little worse for the wear—his jacket was missing entirely, but he stood firm, gripping Braveheart in his hand.

"Riku!" Kairi said, running up to hug him. "Oh my gosh, Riku!"

"Kairi…" Riku closed his eyes. "What's going on? Why is everyone heading to the storm shelter?"

"It was the only thing we could think of," Xion said. "To make sure everyone else was safe. Are your parents alright? We were walking Mom there when we ran into you…"

"Oh, Riku," Amaya said. "How wonderful it is to see you. I didn't know you were working with the others."

"I wasn't…" Riku said. "Wait a minute, since when does Xion call you 'Mom'?"

"Since a few days ago," Amaya said. "But it's all the best for me. Xion's as my daughter as anything else and Roxas is like a son to me."

"Now there's a sense of irony…after all, I always said that Riku was like a son to me…"

Riku winced and Roxas summoned Oathkeeper and Oblivion. Axel yelped and called on Flame Liberator. Destiny's Embrace appeared in Kairi's hand in a flash of light and Xion summoned both her Keyblade and a long, blue shield. But none of that compared to the green mist floating down from the sky. Out of the corner of his eye, Roxas could see Xion stand in front of Amaya, who was looking very, very nervous.

"I knew you were lying from the start!" Riku shouted. "Show yourself, Maleficent."

"Lying from the start? Really, my dear Riku, was there anything I said that was actually untrue?"

The mist began to twist around and shift and it became thicker and thicker and thicker. And then…she stood before them. Tall and covered in a black coat that was almost like a bat's wings. Maleficent…who looked far, far too happy.

"And so here we are," Maleficent said. "I told you before Riku…I only wanted you to be happy."

She took a few steps forward and reached out a hand. Green fire shot out of it and Riku leapt backwards. He leapt up into the air, without even touching off of anything to brace himself, Riku's body began to glow. He leapt higher than any person could have jumped and landed behind Maleficent. He slashed out with Braveheart and Maleficent turned back into mist. Riku's attack missed.

"But you're so full of rage," Maleficent said. "How does it feel to know that you're a failure, Riku? All you wanted, from the time you were a child, was to have the strength to protect the things that mattered. And tell me, Riku, where are the things that matter? Those you cherish?"

"We're right here!" Kairi proclaimed. "And Riku doesn't need to protect me! I can take care of myself and I can protect others too!"

"Like you did in Arendelle?" Maleficent smiled and her eyes narrowed into slits. "You did an excellent job protecting Princess Anna and Queen Elsa, didn't you, Kairi?"

Roxas grit his teeth so hard, he thought they might have cracked. Amaya gasped and Xion gave a small cry of frustration.

"And who is this?" Maleficent said, turning towards Amaya. Xion tried to make herself as big as she could, to try and make Amaya unnoticeable. It wasn't very effective and Amaya gently pushed Xion to the side.

"I know exactly what you are," Amaya said, her voice far lower than Roxas had ever heard it. "You're the creature trying to destroy my children."

"Are they really your children?" Maleficent asked. "Foul creatures such as these? The boy who was never supposed to exist? The girl who never existed in the first place? They kept your son from you."

Amaya yanked one of the pencils from her hair and ran at Maleficent. It wasn't a weapon. It wasn't even close to a weapon. She'd have been better off fighting with a Struggle bat. Maleficent cackled and shifted her body, side-stepping Amaya. Amaya stumbled onto her hands and knees, turned around and threw the pencil at Maleficent. If she had intended to use it as a knife or a dart, it didn't work—the pencil soared over Maleficent's shoulder.

"Were you trying to impale me?" Maleficent laughed. "What do you think I am? A vampire of the Black Court? I left behind those limitations long ago!"

She advanced towards Amaya and Roxas darted forward. He swung Oblivion and Oathkeeper down at the same time and struck Maleficent in both shoulders. She gave a small gasp of surprise but then she smiled.

"Ah yes, Roxas," Maleficent said. "So determined to protect this pathetic woman. Why bother, though? If you fail, then you'll have doomed Sora's mother. And I think we both know that he wouldn't want that."

"Sora would want me to fight you!" Roxas snapped, swinging Oathkeeper again. Maleficent parried it with her staff…that formed out of nowhere with a snap of her fingers. "Sora would always want there to be heroes to fight the darkness!"

"And yet, you stand with such creatures as this?" Maleficent said, gesturing towards Xion. "An abomination created in a fiendish laboratory?"

"What does that matter to you anyway?" Xion snapped. "You've joined with other evil scientists!"

"Means to an end and nothing more," Maleficent said. "They wanted an opportunity and I gave it to them. And I've gained more than you ever realized. Now then…we are back where it started."

Maleficent slammed her staff on the ground and the shockwave that came out of it knocked all of them to the ground. Maleficent cackled again and turned her attention to Kairi.

"Thinking of you, wherever you are…" Maleficent recited. "Wouldn't you like to see Sora, Kairi?"

Kairi didn't say anything. She staggered to her feet and pointed Destiny's Embrace at Maleficent. Maleficent didn't seem to have noticed.

"There are many worlds, but they share the same sky—one sky, one destiny," Maleficent said. "Let's see what you make of this sky!"

Darkness poured out from Maleficent in every direction and Roxas felt a pounding in his ears. Was Maleficent trying to summon another Heartless? He held onto Oathkeeper and Oblivion and gripped them tighter. He would fight whatever she called forth. Anything to keep the islands safe.

There was an awful screeching—like broken glass against metal—and Roxas gasped when he saw what it was that Maleficent had summoned. It was a very large Heartless…a very familiar Heartless. It looked almost like a giant parrot's skeleton. Or maybe a zombie of a giant parrot. It had swords for wings that weren't to its body, instead hovering very close to it and to each other. Gripped in its beak was a large treasure chest, filled with gold coins. Its tail was several human skulls…

The Ruler of the Sky.

Roxas had fought it, or at least fought a Heartless very much like it, ages ago in Neverland. That had been one of the hardest fights he'd ever had. But that had been a long time ago…he wasn't nearly as strong then as he was now. But there hadn't been anyone else he cared about to get caught in the crossfire in Neverland. Roxas grit his teeth. He'd have to get the Ruler of the Sky away from here, or else it could hurt Amaya or Kairi or Xion.

"And there's more where that came from," Maleficent said. She turned towards Kairi. "Didn't you used to have nightmares of Kani Kingu, Emperor of the Crab People?"

Roxas had no idea what that meant, but Kairi flushed and Riku paled. Maleficent waved her hand and there was a great rumbling from beneath the ground. The rumbling grew louder and bumpier. Axel and Amaya both fell down again. Roxas stabbed Oathkeeper and Oblivion down, into the path, to keep his bearings. And then it emerged from the sand.

This Heartless was different than any that Roxas had seen before. It looked like a cross between a spider, a lobster and a giant crab. It had long legs, as wide around as the coconut trees that covered the island. It was nearly ten feet tall and its tail was barbed. It had four claws—one of them was as large as a tram from Twilight Town. Its back—its shell—was covered in thick armor and spikes. It snarled and waved its claws, sweeping down to try to crush them. Roxas dove out of the way and he could see the others trying to get back as well.

"And less we forget," Maleficent said, turning towards Amaya. "Your husband has a fishing boat…but does he know what else is in the water?"

Something splashed in the ocean, but it wasn't close enough for Roxas to see. Kairi gasped and shot a beam of light at Maleficent. The spell missed and Maleficent cackled once again.

"Land, sea and sky…" Maleficent said. "You've done me a great service, actually."

"We're not going to let you hurt anyone else here!" Xion shouted. "We're going to kill you Maleficent!"

"You'll try, and you'll fail," Maleficent said. "Just as you always have, Replica. Just as you always will."

She set a wave of green fire out of her staff, towards Amaya. Xion screamed and leapt in front of it, holding her shield as high as she could. The fire pressed against it.

"Xion, get Amaya out of here," Axel shouted, charging forward with Flame Liberator. "We'll handle these clowns!"

Riku charged at the giant crab monster and Kairi pointed her Keyblade at the ocean. Ice shot out of the end of Destiny's Embrace and it formed a little platform for her to stand on. Roxas glanced at the Ruler of the Sky—it was soaring down towards Xion and Amaya. Roxas leapt up into the air and glided towards the giant Heartless.

"The flying one's mine!"

oooo

When he, Sora and Kairi had been growing up on the islands, Riku had considered himself their protector. He had kept them safe from bigger kids who had thought that Sora was annoying—which hadn't happened that often. Most of the kids they knew had found Sora too friendly to dislike. He had kept them safe from the kids who didn't like Kairi because she was a goody-two-shoes or because her father was the mayor…which also didn't happen very often, because Tyson's position didn't actually mean very much on the islands. Riku had wanted to keep them safe from bullies.

But he'd been a bully, himself, even if he hadn't realized it at the time. He had belittled Sora a hundred times—the wooden ship that Sora had made hadn't been perfect, Sora didn't play blitzball right, Sora didn't eat ice cream cones the right way. Anything that could make himself look bigger and better, Riku had said. What was worse was how he'd gloated about being better than everyone else and part of that was how he wasn't afraid of anything. Not afraid of sharks (Sora was afraid of sharks) or of jellyfish (Kairi was afraid of jellyfish) or of Kani Kingu. The stories were something usually told around campfires, but Riku had made them even bloodier and scarier than they were supposed to be.

The story that Riku had been told when he was small was of Kani Kingu, Emperor of the Crab People. Who, if he was displeased, would grab you and take you down to his lair until you repented and resolved to be good, but as a reminder for the bad things you'd done, Kani would replace your hand with a crab claw. But Riku had terrorized Sora and Kairi with stories of how Kani King would smash through the floor of your house and grab you in his claws and carry you into his lair…and then use bad magic to cut you into pieces and eat you up and then eat up your mommy and daddy. Kairi had had nightmares. Sora had declared he would never ever speak to Riku ever again (he had lasted three hours).

But now, facing a gigantic Heartless that was part crab, part lobster and possibly part scorpion, Riku was wishing he'd never ever even thought to try and scare Sora and Kairi. The Heartless—and really, what could he call it other than Kani Kingu—was extremely powerful. Each of its legs was as thick around as a coconut tree and looked as if they were made of stone or metal. Riku slashed out with Braveheart, but the giant crustacean didn't seem to have noticed. It scrambled down the path, towards Amaya and Xion. Xion was shooting balls of fire out of her Keyblade—for whatever reason, they were white instead of yellow or orange. Riku grimaced—he had to think quickly to get Kani Kingu down before anyone got hurt. Xion would never forgive herself if anything happened to Sora's mother…and Riku wasn't sure he'd ever forgive himself if anything happened to either of them.

He darted upwards, using the same techniques he had learned during his Mark of Mastery exam. Riku slammed down against Kani Kingu's back. One of the spikes broke off but then there was creaking and a new one grew in its place, even sharper than before. Kani Kingu growled and tried to shake Riku off of it, but Riku slammed Braveheart down again to brace himself. He had faced tougher opponents than this Heartless before. He wouldn't be bested now. He would not allow anything to happen to anyone else.

Xion, Axel and Amaya had all broken into a run. Axel tossed his chakrams from behind his back—one of them bounced harmlessly off Kani Kingu's large claw—itself almost impossibly huge, but the other cut into Kani Kingu's eye stalk. The creature shrieked in rage and Riku had to hang on for dear life. Xion darted to the side, falling back into the thickets and groves that lined the path to the storm shelter. It was the last patch of vegetation, since the hill itself was bare. A moment later, there was a flash of light and a very large palm tree came crashing down in front of the path. Xion darted back in front of it, just as Kani Kingu grabbed the fallen tree with its enormous claw. There was more creaking and then the sound of splintering wood and the tree fairly exploded. Riku immediately cast Barrier to protect himself—Xion wasn't so lucky and dozens of splinters struck her in the back. She gave a small scream as one larger piece of debris cut her leg and she fell down, rolling away from the path…Riku heard a sickening thump.

"I'm okay!" Xion called, even though Riku was certain she wasn't telling the truth. "Make sure it doesn't get to the shelter!"

Riku glanced back up the path. With no tree to deter it, there was nothing in the path to prevent the Kani Kingu's advance. Nothing but himself and Axel that was…Roxas was high above their heads, fighting that giant flying pirate Heartless and Kairi was a hundred yards out on the water. Riku grit his teeth as he saw Axel fairly toss Amaya into the storm shelter's doors and then slam the door shut…with himself on the outside. Axel raised his Keyblade and sealed the doors. There would be no way for the Heartless to get in…and no way for the people inside to get out.

Crabs, lobsters, scorpions, spiders…they were all jointed. Riku had eaten so many crabs and lobsters growing up, he couldn't have bothered to keep count, unless he was trying to out-eat Sora or Tidus. And one of the things he knew about eating crabs and lobsters were that they had to be taken apart. The outer shell was inedible for humans—though several farmers would take the shells and mash them into pulpy meal and powder for their chickens. Riku hadn't been able to make much of a dent against the Kani Kingu's armored back. But maybe its limbs and claws, however fearsome, were not so sturdy. Riku channeled his magic and leapt up off of the Kani Kingu's back and slashed at one of its legs. It broke off with a terrible snap.

The Kani Kingu roared and whipped around to face Riku. It struck out with its enormous claw—that thing had to be larger than a truck!—but Riku rolled with the blow and it missed. The Kani Kingu had eight legs—er, make that seven legs—and four claws. That was a lot, but if he could keep it angry and distracted while he whittled away at it, it wouldn't be able to attack anyone who was hiding in the storm shelter. The people of the Destiny Islands, the people who mattered…they needed to be protected.

Axel twisted his Keyblade back into his chakrams and sent them flying, on fire, back at Kani Kingu. The flames wicked up and the giant Heartless began stamping them out with its largest claw. Riku slashed at one of the joints—basically its shoulder, where the claw connected to the rest of the body. The Heartless screeched and Riku grit his teeth. He was a Keyblade Master. He had to be able to handle this.

He leapt off the back of the Kani Kingu and pulled Braveheart back. The Heartless was injured, but not so badly that it was no longer a threat. It still had most of its legs and three of its claws. And from the way it was using two of its claws to pick up its larger detached claw, it wasn't a stupid Heartless either. It had some sense of at least tool-using…Riku wondered whether it may be able to regenerate.

"Thundaga!" Riku shouted, holding Braveheart up as if it were a lightning rod. There was a crackling and lightning shot out of his Keyblade and onto the Kani Kingu. Axel responded with blasts of fire and the cracks of the joints of the giant crustacean's legs and claws began more discernible. The Kani Kingu darted forward, faster than its massive size should have allowed. Riku dodged its claws again, but he could feel one of the legs scrape against his jacket. Riku swallowed hard. He and Axel would need to end this very soon.

The Kani Kingu's legs were cracked, which meant they might be more vulnerable to an attack. It wasn't the same as its hard outer shell. Riku frowned. He needed to attack all of them at once. Destroying the Heartless should ideally be done as quickly as possible. He glanced at Braveheart. It wasn't Soul Eater or Way to the Dawn, which meant that he probably couldn't pull off his old magic that was powered by darkness. Despite his immunity to the corruptive effects of darkness, Riku wasn't sure he could call on it as he had done before. But that didn't necessarily mean he couldn't use the old tricks in new ways.

"Aura!"

Light shimmered from Braveheart and Riku began darting backwards and forwards and left and right. He heard more cracking as his Keyblade struck out against the Heartless's legs. He dove upwards and then slammed Braveheart deep into the earth and small pillars of light shot up from the ground, blasting the Kani Kingu hard in the chest and stomach. Riku turned his head, just in time to see the Kani Kingu collapse—it had only two legs left and all three of its remaining claws were broken. The Kani Kingu turned its head up, just in time to get struck by Axel's Keyblade—he had tossed it as if it were one of his chakrams. A moment later, the Kani Kingu burst and Riku watched its heart float up and away.

"Alright," Riku said, locking eyes with Axel. He couldn't see any sign of Maleficent, but that didn't meant she wasn't still around. "Now what?"

"Roxas!"

oooo

Roxas soared upwards, toward the Ruler of the Sky. It was a very strong Heartless, but what he remembered most from his fight with it in Neverland was that it had been hard to chase down. Beyond being strong, the Ruler of the Sky knew to pick its own battles. A lot of Heartless he had hunted down for the Organization hadn't sought him out, but had been happy to engage him. The Invisibles and Orcuses, the Gigas Shadows, the Infernal Engine, the Leechgrave…but the Ruler of the Sky had been a bit different.

It had been called forth when that funny pirate in the red coat—Captain Hook—had searched and searched and searched for treasure, growing greedier and more desperate. That greed had led the Heartless to them and Captain Hook and that other little pirate had had to run for their lives. Roxas wasn't sure they had seen him fight it. But Roxas was ready for it. He flew higher, twisting to take aim at the Ruler of the Sky's tail. It was what he had attacked the first time he had fought this Heartless and it was as good a weak spot as anything else.

Roxas swung Oathkeeper and Oblivion at the same time, slashing against the skulls and spearhead that made up the Heartless's tail. He managed three combos before the Ruler of the Sky started swiping its tail around. Roxas dodged the blow and braced himself; he knew what was coming. A huge ball of ice shot out of the Ruler of the Sky's tail. It wasn't jagged or spiky, like one of Roxas's Blizzard spells would have been, but he knew that if he touched that orb, he'd probably fall all the way down to the ground. Roxas glanced down as he soared on the winds—they were higher up than the tallest of the trees. Riku and Axel looked like ants below them.

The Ruler of the Sky twisted in midair and glided away, daring Roxas to try and keep up with it. Roxas wasn't sure how he was still flying—he hadn't used the trees or boulders for momentum, like he had in the Land of Dragons and Deep Jungle, but at the moment, that didn't seem to matter that much. He needed to keep pace with the Ruler of the Sky and make sure that it didn't get too close to anyone else. He hurled Oathkeeper at it and his Keyblade slashed against the Heartless's tail before returning to his hand.

The Ruler of the Sky flapped its massive wings, just as Roxas broke off the spear tip from its tail. The Heartless reared up, ascending higher and higher into the sky. It turned its massive head towards Roxas and began spitting out doubloons from the treasure chest gripped in its mouth. They weren't very large, as projectiles went, but they stung when they hit and Roxas couldn't afford to get distracted.

"Reflega!" Roxas cried, holding Oblivion and Oathkeeper straight out in front of him. The semi-fluid shield erupted from his Keyblades, reinforcing on itself. The tiny gold coins bounced off harmlessly. Roxas paused for a moment—it didn't seem like the Ruler of the Sky was going to stop anytime soon. He remembered this attack from Neverland, but there, the Heartless had eventually run out of coins and retreated. Maybe he could turn this into an attack of his own. Roxas tightened his grip on his Keyblades and cast a second Reflega spell. The shield was four times stronger than it normally would have been and it began redirecting the doubloons back at the Ruler of the Sky.

The Heartless recoiled and jerked its head back, giving Roxas an opening. He pushed the shield forward, knocking the Ruler of the Sky off-balance and then twisted his wrist, sending Oblivion flying. His Keyblade landed right in the center of the pirate treasure chest and wedged itself under the lid. Coins and jewels began spilling out of it and Roxas glared at the Heartless.

"Aeroza!"

The tremendously powerful spell came out of Oblivion and blasted the Ruler of the Sky even higher than before, completely out of control. The Heartless shook and shuddered and coins spilled out the chest even more, falling like raindrops. Then, there was the sound of splintering wood and the treasure chest fell out of the Ruler of the Sky's beak…along with the top half of its beak entirely. Roxas called Oblivion back to his hand just as the treasure chest disappeared from sight. IThe Heartless shrieked and charged at Roxas, twisting its wings around. The wings were made of pirate swords…cutlasses…and each one of them could move on its own.

Roxas parried against one cutlass with Oblivion and then another with Oathkeeper. Ruler of the Sky was powerful, but not at all skilled with its swords. Roxas slashed out with both Keyblades and sent out a wave of light—one of the cutlasses was blasted away and the Ruler of the Sky cried out. It waved its tail again and sent out one of the orbs of freezing energy. Roxas blasted it back with Oathkeeper and it struck the giant Heartless squarely in the chest. Two more cutlasses broke away and Roxas's Keyblades began to glow with light. He darted underneath the Ruler of the Sky and slashed at its chest. It twisted its tail, trying to strike at him with the three golden skulls that still comprised it. Roxas dodged the blow and slashed with Oathkeeper and Oblivion. The skulls fell, one by one, and the Ruler of the Sky screeched.

Roxas soared even higher, so much so now that it was impossible to see his friends and he could barely see the island itself. Roxas turned around and slashed at the Ruler of the Sky's chest. Oathkeeper and Oblivion, Oblivion and Oathkeeper—bone and feather chipped away and then Roxas pushed his Keyblades through the giant Heartless. Ruler of the Sky burst and Roxas watched as its heart faded away.

Now to get back to his friends…

oooo

Kairi tried to keep her balance on her little ice platform as it went further and further out to sea. She was probably thirty yards or so off-shore and could still see Riku and Axel fighting the giant crab monster…Kani Kingu. Kairi shook her head. She'd had lots of nightmares from the scary stories that Riku had told her when she was little, but that was nothing compared to fighting Heartless. She had to focus…there was something in the water. Something that could hurt others…

With a lurch in her stomach, Kairi could see the Gallahad in the distance. Benjiro would be aboard that boat…and if Maleficent would try to hurt Amaya, she would definitely try to hurt Sora's father as well. Kairi gripped Destiny's Embrace tightly in her hands and tried to see where the giant Heartless was. Her knees began to knock together and Kairi tried to ignore how nervous she was. Fighting on a little platform of ice wasn't like fighting on the ground or even in the air—how did Roxas manage to stay up for as long as he did? Kairi shook her head. She had to focus.

Something large slammed against the ice platform and Kairi nearly fell into the water. She caught a glimpse of a dorsal fin. That could mean anything. It could just be a dolphin or porpoise…or it could mean a shark. Sharks had given Sora nightmares when they were little, but they had never really bothered Kairi. Daddy had always pointed out that sharks usually just wanted to be left alone and that if you were careful, they wouldn't bother you. All the books Kairi had read in school had said the same thing, more or less. There were a few species that were especially aggressive, but those tended to be rare.

Of course, that was a regular shark. If this were some sort of shark-based Heartless…Kairi swallowed. She'd heard some stories from Sora about the Heartless he'd fought in Atlantica and in the Caribbean waters. There weren't many Heartless that swam but that didn't meant that there weren't any. Kairi felt something slam into her ice platform again—by now, Gallahad was so close, she could actually see Benjiro on it. She wouldn't let anything happen to him…but whatever was in the water beneath her, she still couldn't see. And how could she fight something that she couldn't see?

Bump!

Her ice platform cracked…right down the middle. Kairi screamed as it broke into two pieces and she had to balance on one foot. The Heartless in the water slammed into her again and what remained of her platform shattered and Kairi fell into the water. Kairi gasped. She was pretty good at swimming—it was pretty hared not to be on the Destiny Islands—but she wasn't sure she could fight and swim at the same time. She was probably a hundred yards from shore now and she still couldn't see what she was fighting. Some sort of shark-Heartless? Kairi felt something loop around her ankle and tug hard. Kairi barely had time to take a breath before she was below the water.

Salty sea water stung her eyes and it only got worse when Kairi's eyes widened as she realized just what had ahold of her. What was looped around her ankle was a tentacle…and what was attached to the tentacle was something like Kairi had never seen before. It was something huge with the head of a shark and body of a shark, but it also had tentacles…or arms. Kairi remembered a science project she'd done when she was a little girl—the arms of an octopus or squid were covered with suction cups, but tentacles only had them on the ends. What was wrapped around her ankle certainly wasn't an arm…but maybe this creature had both tentacles and arms.

Head of shark and with the tentacles and arms of an octopus and a second mouth with a squid's beak…this was a luska. Which had scary stories that had given Riku nightmares when they were little kids. Kairi's lungs screamed for air and she tried to swim away but the grip on her ankle was tight. She aimed Destiny's Embrace at the terrible creature and sent out a beam of light. It hit the luska squarely in the eye—an eye as large as Kairi's whole head—and she managed to break free. Kairi swam up to the surface and gasped for air. She kicked her legs and tried to fill her lungs with as much oxygen as she could, but then the luska wrapped an arm around her ankles. Kairi could feel the suction cups tearing into her legs. Right before she was yanked below the surface, Kairi gasped the first word that came to mind—"Pulmo!"

Kairi didn't know what the word meant, but the pressure on her lungs wasn't as tight as it was before, even as she was pulled beneath the surface of the water. The luska had a firm grip of her ankles and Kairi was dragged lower and lower beneath the surface…and closer and closer to the Heartless. She aimed Destiny's Embrace and sent out a ball of fire. The magic looked unnatural, even for magic, as it pressed against the luska. The arm wrapped around Kairi's legs tightened and the suction cups cut deeper. Kairi could see blood beginning to seep from her wounds and the salt water made them sting even more. She gave a cry of pain and slashed with Destiny's Embrace. The arm broke off from the luska's body, but remained wrapped tight around her ankles. Kairi tried to swim away, but she couldn't move her legs well and it was felt like the Iuska still had some control of its detached limb.

Kairi tossed Destiny's Embrace outward and called for a beam of light to shoot out of the tip of her Keyblade, destroying the arm binding her legs together. She began slashing with Destiny's Embrace, attacking everything she could reach. The luska screeched at her and clicked its beak. Kairi started swimming to try and get around the luska. She had to get away from the luska's teeth and beak if she had any hope of fighting it. It shot out one of its tentacles at her, but Kairi was able to dodge it this time. She slashed at the tentacle—and this one was definitely a tentacle—with her Keyblade. There was a great rush of bubbles and ink and the tentacle was ripped off, falling to the ocean floor.

The luska began to spin around, whipping out its tentacles and arms. Darkness began to spiral out in every direction. Kairi swiped with Destiny's Embrace, but she wasn't used to fighting underwater. She sent out balls of fire and balls of light, but she couldn't swim and fight at the same time. A tentacle looped around her wrist and the luska lunged at her. It slammed against Kairi knocking her back. Kairi's head rocked and all she could see was the water. The luska wrapped an arm around her legs—now she was freely bleeding from a dozen cuts from suction cups on her legs and ankles.

Kairi screamed in a mixture of fear and anger but the luska sent another tentacle, slamming against her head. Kairi saw stars and bubbles and felt the tentacle wrap itself around her chest, pinning her arms to her sides. Kairi tried to move, but she couldn't budge—not her arms, not her legs. She screamed again and tried to swing her Keyblade, but the luska wrapped an arm around in and yanked it out of her hand. Kairi strained her neck as the luska pulled her closer and closer to its shark mouth. Kairi saw rows of teeth getting closer and closer…she thrashed as hard as she could, but the tentacles and arms binding her didn't budge. She could see her Keyblade further and further away.

Her Keyblade…

Sora knew a trick with his Keyblade. He could make it take a different shape—Terra could do it too. Kairi couldn't move her hands but maybe she could call her Keyblade back to her and then make it something else. She twisted again—the teeth were right above her now…the luska was going to bite her head off if she didn't do something. She just needed to move her fingers…just a teeny bit.

There was a flash of light and Kairi felt the warmth and comfort of Destiny's Embrace travel from her hand to the rest of her body, spreading from her head to her feet. She still couldn't budge much more than that, but she thought the luska hesitated…which she hadn't thought would have even been possible. But it gave her an opening. Kairi had grown up on the islands…she had grown up watching Daddy work with fishermen and sailors. And she remembered some of the antique fishing equipment that was no longer used…

Destiny's Embrace glowed bright and then it began to elongate. The hilt of her Keyblade shifted and the grip moved lower. A moment later, it took shape…as a harpoon. The spear of light that was fired a moment later glowed as bright as the sun and the next thing Kairi knew, the luska was gone and the tentacles binding her vanished as if they'd never been there in the first place. Kairi's Keyblade returned to her hand and she began to kick her way back to the surface. It was eerie in its own way, with the water being so displaced.

Air filled her lungs as Kairi broke to the surface and the magic protecting her from drowning wore off. She hacked and coughed and spat out way more salt water than she thought possible to have swallowed. The next thing she was aware of was a pair of hands were pulling her up. Kairi gasped in fear, but then the arms holding her were hugging her.

"Kairi!"

"Benjrio?"

Sora's father…she was on the Gallahad. She was with one of the safest people in the whole world.

Kairi cried.

oooo

Xion grit her teeth to keep from crying—her leg hurt badly from where the giant crab monster had hit her with the splinters from the broken log. She wished she had had thought of summoning her Keyblade Armor, but too late for that now. Xion tried to get her bearings. She could see Roxas fighting that flying Heartless and it looked like he was winning—the treasure chest that had been in its mouth had been destroyed. Kairi had gotten pulled under the water but then Benjiro had tugged her out of it…and she was pretty sure that Riku and Axel were handling the crab Heartless…but if she had gotten hurt, then maybe Riku had gotten hurt too. That would be awful.

Where should she go then? The others needed her help, but who needed it most? Xion bit her lip. What could Maleficent be planning? Where was Maleficent now, anyway? Xion looked over her shoulder. She saw the large Heartless that Riku and Roxas were fighting but there was no sign of Maleficent. How could she have vanished without any of them noticing? Xion's stomach tightened in dread.

"What should I do?" Xion asked quietly, even though there was nobody there to hear her. Who needed her help most? If she chose wrong, somebody could get hurt…people were always getting hurt because of her…

"You should do nothing. Because you are nothing. Nothing but wickedness—an unholy abomination. You were never supposed to exist…it would be better if you didn't exist…"

A single black feather floated down in front of Xion and her breath caught. Not here, not now…not when everything else was falling down around her. Xion turned her head and saw Sephiroth standing right in front of her. Xion gasped. How did he get here?

"You're really asking yourself that?" Sephiroth said, brushing his silver hair back. "You're a greater imbecile than I realized, no. i, but then again, you do cling uselessly to the light. I am here, because you are here."

"And I as well," another voice said. "You have always been, and always will be, an absolutely useless puppet."

Xemnas. Appearing out of thin air, right behind her. Xion turned her head again and immediately summoned her Keyblade. Kingdom Key shined bright in her hands. Xemnas looked at it as if it were nothing.

"That's because it is nothing! That's a sham Keyblade and you're a pathetic little brat! and you're a sham!"

Vanitas. Xion whipped around again and saw Vanitas standing in full armor—it wasn't Keyblade Armor, but his face was still covered by that strange mask of his. And standing right next to him was Master Xehanort, dressed in the same black robe he'd been wearing before.

"You can't be here!" Xion said, pointing Kingdom Key at Xehanort. "You're dead! Sora killed you. You're dead, dead, dead, dead, dead!"

"You said that before in that ludicrous world where they let a mouse rule," Xehanort said. "And it is true that I no longer draw breath. But does that make me any less real than you? A doll made to be a weapon?"

"I am not a doll!" Xion shouted. "We are not the same!"

"You're right!" Xehanort said and then he raised his hands up, as if he'd just run a race and beaten everyone else or else won a tournament in the Olympus Colosseum. "This world was once my home. I was weaned on this tiny place. My heart alone sought freedom…it will be a joy to see it sink below the surface. Fools and simpletons…they were all so content with this prison."

Xion screamed and aimed her Keyblade at Xehanort, but then Sephiroth drew his sword—it looked even longer now than it did in Disney Castle—and held it out to block her attack. His eyes narrowed into slits.

"We are a part of you, no. i," Sephiroth said. "You'll never let go of your past, so you will never be free of us."

"I will too be free!" Xion cried. "I'll fight you all and I'll beat you all and then the darkness will go away!"

Her leg still really, really hurt but that didn't matter. The only thing that mattered was stopping these four from hurting anyone else. But then, Vanitas began to laugh and he summed his Keyblade…the phrase Void Gear crossed through her mind. Master Xehanort summoned his Keyblade—huge and twisted and black—and then Xemans called forth his Ethereal Blades.

Xion charged at Sephiroth first. He leapt into the air as if he were about to fly and slashed at her. Xion twisted on her heel and parried the blow, but the sound of his sword hitting her Keyblade was still as loud as thunder. Vanitas dropped into the shadow provided by a palm tree, melting almost as if he were a Shadow. Xion looked left and right, but she couldn't see him. Before she had a chance to cast anything that might reveal him, Xemnas swept up to her, pushing down one of his Etheral blades as if it were a sword. Xion dodged the blow, but then Vanitas sprung up from nothing and slashed at her with Void Gear, hitting her hard in her injured leg.

Xion staggered and fell to the ground—sand got into the cuts on her leg and that hurt even worse. Vanitas slammed Void Gear onto the ground and the shockwave pinned her down even more. Xion saw Sephiroth looking down at her and then he raised his sword above his head, as if he were about to chop her own head off. Xion screamed and rolled out of the way. She closed her eyes and gripped her Keyblade as tight as she could. She thought of the first time she fought Sephiroth and called for her Keyblade Armor. Just like it'd been last time, it was white and shiny. Sephiroth's eyes widened in surprise.

"Now that's odd," Sephiroth said. "To think that you of all people would be selected by him. But it's going to fail in the end…everything about you is failure."

Xion tossed her Keyblade at Sephiroth for saying that and it hit him in the shoulder. That knocked him down to his knees, but he stood back up again. Before Xion could advance the attack, Vanitas slammed into her. They glared at each other through their masks and then Vanitas punched her in the head. Xion could feel the darkness press against her helmet and tried to push him off, but Vanitas was too heavy. She called for Kingdom Key to return to her hand and Vanitas snarled as if he were a wolf or a bear. Xion leapt back to her feet, just in time to intercept a blow from Xehanort.

"You are insufferably stubborn," Xehanort snarled. He slashed with his Keyblade—Xion couldn't remember what it was called and she wasn't sure why that bothered her. She held up Kingdom Key to guard against it. The two Keyblades smashed against each other and sparks flew out in every direction. "How anyone tolerates your presence is baffling!"

"Indeed," Xemnas said, advancing towards Xion with his Ethereal Blade outstretched. "It is hardly a wonder that I attempted to orchestrate your elimination, puppet. A mistake that I will rectify. Indeed, those who are burdened by your very existence, that is to say, everyone you have ever known, shall be indebted to me when I dispatch you from this earthly plain."

"You're not real!" Xion wailed, charging at Xemnas with her Keyblade outstretched. She slammed against it but Xemnas summoned his second Ethereal Blade. He growled and sliced it forward, catching her Keyblade between both Keyblades. Xion pressed her injured heel against the ground, trying not to cry out in pain. Xemnas had always been good at using his Ethereal Blades to defend himself. The last time Xion had fought him…in the Keyblade Graveyard, he had blocked her attack. And Kairi had been able to break through his block, but then Xemnas had hit her with the spell that drained her energy. And Xion hadn't been strong enough…hadn't been good enough to keep Xemnas from taking Kairi away…and then Xehanort had…

"None of that would have happened if it were not for you," Sephiroth said. "You are the reason that Sora is no longer here…"

"How fitting it is," Xemnas said, "that your presence harbors in the absolute destruction of this world."

"I'm not going to let this world fall to darkness!" Xion shouted, pressing harder against Xemnas's Ethereal Blades. It didn't seem to have made any difference—if anything, her grip was slipping. But she couldn't give up. Bad things would happen to the people she cared about if she lost…she couldn't lose. She wouldn't.

"Who said anything about it falling to darkness," Vanitas taunted. "I could just go and kill every last person who lives on this pathetic little rock. I think I'll save that stupid old woman you're so fond of for last. Imagine the look on Sora's face if he gets back and his dear old mommy is dead."

Xion screamed and leapt backwards, somersaulting in the air and slashing at Vanitas. He barely got Void Gear up in time to protect himself and then he sent out a wave of darkness from his fingers. Xion was blasted hard in the chest and felt herself falling…falling…falling…everything went blacker than the night.

xxxx

Xion still felt herself falling, as if she were in a really, really long tunnel…but she could see light in the distance. It was all she had to go on, but it was still something. Her head pounded worse than any headache that she could remember. Xion could barely breathe. She'd failed…she been forced into darkness…she needed to find the light. She needed to get back to the islands…the light was so close…she could almost taste it. She couldn't fail…she couldn't be worthless…

Xion stumbled through the light and then landed on something hard. Something made of stone? No…something made of glass? Or maybe glass on stone? It was a giant circle—Xion's first thought was the tiled patterns in the courtyards outside the gates of Master Ansem's castle. But this wasn't really a pattern…it was a portrait. A portrait of herself against a silverish-gold bacground. There were designs all over the platform. There was a outer ring of what looked like petals…or maybe the outlines of sea shells. And then there was a ring of the insignia that Xemnas and the others had used to identify all Nobodies—some of the Nobodies even had it on their skin. And there were four little portraits surrounding Xion's own portrait. Axel and Sora…and Isa…and Xemnas.

This…this was a Dive. Into her own heart…and staring her down at the head of her heart were Vanitas, Xemnas and Xehanort. There was no sign of Sephiroth. But Xehanort and Vanitas had their Keyblades out. Xemnas was glaring at the portrait of Isa as if it were personally offensive.

"That filthy traitor," Xemnas said. He held up his Ethereal Blade and then slammed it against Isa's head. "Would that I could do this to you again…"

"Leave Isa alone!" Xion cried, holding up Kingdom Key. A moment later, she flicked her wrist and her replicated claymore—the weapon she had learned to use through connection with Isa—appeared in her other hand. Xemnas glowered at her and summoned his other Ethereal Blade and sliced it into Isa's portrait…marking him with the Recusant's Sigil.

Xion screamed in pain and clutched at her head. She dug her fingers into her hair…wait, how could she feel her hair? Where had her Keyblade Armor gone? She glanced at her hands and realized that she was wearing her old Organization robe…robe, gloves, heeled boots…everything was as if she were back in the Organization. Even her portrait showed her as if she were in the Organization. No…that wasn't part of her life anymore.

"This is your heart, puppet," Xemnas. "When that one served me, when he was loyal, he knew his place and he knew what you truly were. A failed experiment, doomed to disaster even the simplest of tasks."

Xion charged at him and Xemnas swept up at her as well. Xion leapt into the air and to her astonishment, she didn't fall back down again. Xemnas leapt up and reversed in midair, trying to attack at her back. Xion twisted around and slashed with her Keyblade, hitting Xemnas in the shoulders. Xemnas threw one of his arms back and Xion caught the edge of an Ethereal Blade in the side. She screamed and swung her claymore. It slammed against Xemnas in the arm—it was a blow that would have taken his arm off, had this been the real world. But it wasn't the real world, so the most it did was make him angry.

"A little assistance would be appreciated," Xemnas snarled, looking down at Vanitas and Xehanort. "We are all of the same nature."

"I'm enjoying watching you lose to a stupid little girl," Vanitas said. "Your fancy words won't help you out of this one."

Xion and Xemnas continued to fight, darting this way and that around the outer ring of the platform. Xemnas moved very, very quickly—Xion had a faint memory of this. This was how Sora and Riku had fought the real Xemnas, to finish him off for good. Xemnas could do more than just hover and twist around as if he were flying. He could also send tethers of his horrible nothingness curse out at people who fought him. Xion wrenched away to get away from a tether that wrapped around her ankles and managed to get away. She slashed out with her Keyblade and caught Xemnas in the chest. He backed away and then rose into the air even higher and then he held out his Ethereal Blades. Tiny bolts of plasma began to appear on all sides—everywhere Xion looked, she could see tiny red beams. Xemnas crossed his arms and at once, the beams flew at her.

"Reflectga!" Xion screamed, holding Kingdom Key out. "Reflectza!"

The barrier erupted from her Keyblade and it was thicker and denser than any Xion had ever cast before. It wrapped around her in a perfect sphere…just like the Keyblade Graveyard, when she had worked with Mickey and Aqua. The beams that Xemnas had called forth slammed against it and Xion began dancing around her shield, reinforcing it. The beams surrounded her and as they crashed, they began to glow as they exploded. Eventually, all Xion could see was the explosions. She grit her teeth—her arm was aching from the strain of maintaining the shield. But then, there was an even greater explosion of light as the shield pushed out against Xemnas.

Xion fell down onto the platform, landing on her hands and knees. Xemnas landed too, managing to stay upright, but he was holding his side, like he was injured. And then, when he tried to hold out his arms, he couldn't aim his hands. Xemnas—or at least, the darkness that embodied itself as Xemnas, was dying. He glared at Xion.

"This means nothing," Xemnas said. "For you are nothing…and nothingness is eternal. Do you really believe that your so-called friends will not strike you down the moment they think it's necessary? You're as much a puppet to them as you were to the Organization."

Xion raised Kingdom Key and a beam of light shot out of it, hitting Xemnas squarely in the chest. He crumpled to his feet and began to fade away. A pool of darkness emerged at his feet and bits of darkness trailed up into nothing. As they did so, Xion felt a terrible stabbing in her own chest and she watched as the portrait of Xemnas faded into nothingness as well. Xion looked at Vantias and Xehanort. They both had their Keyblades out. Xion tried not to whimper as she stared them down.

"My turn!" Vanitas cackled. He held out Void Gear and lifted it above his head. In a flash, he melted down. Xion looked left and right—there weren't that many shadows that Vanitas could have hidden away in…except for Xehanort's and her own. As if he had been expecting her to think just that, Vanitas leapt up from her shadow and kicked Xion hard in the chest. Xion fell down, hitting her head against the platform. Vanitas pressed his boot against her stomach, pinning her in place.

"Leave me alone!" Xion cried. "Get off!"

"I don't think I will," Vanitas said, pressing his boot harder. "Let's see just what it takes to make you break."

He crouched down, pinning Xion more securely to the platform—she'd been pinned like this before, by Kairi and Roxas when they were rough-housing. But what they had meant in play, Vanitas meant to hurt her. Vanitas reached down a gloved hand and pressed his fingers against Xion's helmet. Darkness seeped out from his fingertips and pushed against Xion's head. She tried to squirm away, but Vanitas had too good an angle of leverage. He squeezed and Xion felt her helmet get pulled away. There was a sickening crunch of cracking metal as Vanitas broke her helmet. Vanitas's own mask was fading away and Xion found herself staring into a face that looked far, far too much like Sora's. Exactly like Sora's, but with hair as black as hers and gold eyes.

"You know," Vanitas said, taking a lock of Xion's own raven hair, "I always wanted a sister. Someone I could punch!"

He reared back a fist and slammed it into Xion's face. Xion felt her nose break and her head rocked backwards. Vanitas began to laugh harder than ever.

"And someone I could practice my skills on. I always did want to learn how to whittle," Vantias said, holding up a broken piece of Xion's helmet. He knelt down and pressed a pointy end against Xion's face. She gave a small cry, but Vanitas just laughed harder and pressed his makeshift knife harder.

"Stop!" Xion tried to punch him back, but Vanitas grabbed her wrist and squeezed it so tightly, Xion could hear a pop. She cried out in pain and Vanitas slammed her wrist down.

"Pathetic," Vantias said. He grinned savagely. "This is the best that you can do? It's no wonder that Maleficent was able to use you. Now…what am I going to cut off next? Your pathetic little fingers?"

"Get off me!" Xion shouted. Vanitas had her right hand pinned down, but she could use her left too. She strained her neck and glimpsed the portrait of Isa…her claymore appeared in her hand at once and she swept it at Vanitas. It slammed against his head and Vanitas fell to the platform himself. Xion got to her feet, just in time to see Vantias turn his head towards her—the angle of his neck looked wrong. It was as if Vanitas had twisted his head completely around backwards.

"You'll succumb," Vanitas said. "It's in your nature…you're just like me—made for darkness…"

That was the last thing Vanitas said, before Xion raised Kingdom Key—her arm shook so badly, she had to hold her own wrist to steady her aim—and sent out soulfire. The magic burned, purely white, and engulfed Vanitas. The boy screamed and then as Xion's magic faded away, there was nothing there. Nothing but a bunch of tiny pieces of darkness ebbing away. Xion shut her eyes—that was just like Xemnas fading away. Or when Axel had died protecting Sora… But then Xehanort began to laugh.

"You!" Xion blurted. She took a step forward—onto her injured leg. She bit the inside of her cheek to keep from crying. Xehanort grinned, looking more like a wolf than anything else.

"Ah yes," Xehanort said. "This is an interesting twist of events. I must admit that I am surprised, no. i."

"My name is Xion!" Xion snapped. "And I don't care if you find this interesting or not…you're not even real! Sora killed you!"

"Sora defeated Xehanort, but he was not truly slain," Xehanort said. "And whether alive or dead, I still linger. I am a shadow, a haunting…fear and doubt and grief and guilt…all the root of darkness. Darkness is the heart's true essence and it is futile to deny this."

"I don't care if it's the true essence," Xion said, stomping her foot…owwww. "It's still wrong to hurt others. To take things and to break things and to hurt others. We should always reach for the light."

"So many claim to follow the light, but their hearts are as dark as those who freely wield darkness," Xehanort retorted. "Submit…give in…know what true power is."

He held out his hands and darkness swept out from under his feet. It formed pillars over each of the remaining portraits surrounding Xion—first Isa…and Xion realized with a lurch that it was probably Saïx instead, and then Axel and then finally Sora. The platform began to crack and pieces flew off. Xion screamed in pain and clutched at her chest. It felt as if her heart was being impaled. Through eyes blurred with tears and blood, Xion stared at Xehanort. The old man raised his Keyblade and grinned.

"Come and face me, no. i," Xehanort said. "It's your only chance to save yourself, or else be lost to darkness now and forever more."

Xion stood on shaking legs and then raised Kingdom Key. She would fight and even if Xehanort won, she wouldn't give him the satisfaction of seeing her submit to darkness. She would stand firm…or as firm as she could with how badly she ached.

"Holy!"

Pillars of light—thinner, but brighter than Xehanort's pillars of darkness—erupted from the platform and Xion leapt up to channel their power into her attacks. She had seen Ven and Aqua do stuff like this—make their magic cover their entire Keyblade. She'd done something kind of like it in New Orleans, now that she thought about it. Light from one of the pillars surrounded Kingdom Key—soulfire. Xion leapt up and slammed it against Xehanort's Keyblade. He twisted around, like Xemnas would, but Xion was ready for it and summoned Goofy's shield, blocking Xehanort's attempt to slice her in half. He slammed his Keyblade down again and Xion grit her teeth as the shield pressed down against her arm.

"You're deluding yourself," Xehanort said. "Your heart is as dark as mine…consider what you've done…"

"I can't change the horrible things I did," Xion said quietly. And there was so, so much that she had done that was wrong—she had resisted giving Sora back his memories until it was almost too late…she had led Roxas into Riku's trap…she had served Xemnas and hurt so many…she had nearly killed Axel when he had tried to stop her from returning to Sora…she had helped Xehanort try to kill everyone…she had hurt Kairi… "But that doesn't mean I can't do good things! And I won't use darkness again, I won't!"

Memories flashed through her mind: Axel scooping her up to carry her the first time she had fought Sephiroth; Doctor Sweet waiting on her in the doctor's office; Benjiro—Dad—tucking the blanket to her chin and ruffling her hair as he left for work; Kairi, Roxas and Naminé burying her in the sand; getting hugs from Roxas…from Olette…from Granny…from Roxas…from Kairi…from Roxas…Roxas kissing her on the cheek right before they split up in the swamp…

Kingdom Key shined so brightly and so completely that Xion couldn't see anything but light. She leapt into the air and glided towards Xehanort and then she slashed out with her Keyblade. The next thing she knew, she was on the other side of the platform and Xehanort was crumpled down, on his hands and knees.

"I will stand with the light," Xion said. "No matter what happens…you're right, Xehanort, I can't change the things I did wrong or really make up for them, but I will atone and I will go for the light and there is nothing you can do to stop me."

She sent out a beam of light from Kingdom Key and Xehanort was struck in the head. He gasped once and then he shattered, as if he had never been there in the first place. Xion clutched at her heart and then looked down at the platform. It was ruined…the portraits of Axel, Sora and even Saïx were broken apart. There were horrible gashes all over her own portrait, cutting off her head and her right leg and her heart. Xion bit her lip…the stained glass had been very pretty, in its own way. But then, her Keyblade began to glow. Xion held it up without even thinking and then, Kingdom Key shot out a beam of light. It soared upwards—Xion couldn't see anything but a big, black void…it wasn't like darkness. More like…nothingness. But no sooner had she thought this then the beam of light come back. It hit her portrait squarely in the chest and this time, Xion felt warmth.

The light radiated across the stained glass and then it shined as bright as the sun and Xion had to cover her eyes. After a moment, she lowered her hand. Her portrait was different—before, she had been sitting on an empty portrait frame, almost like it was a throne from the Organization. She'd had two portraits on either side of her then—Axel and Saïx on one side, Xemnas and Sora on the other. But now it showed her standing up, holding Kingdom Key in her left hand. Instead of tilting her head, her portrait had her turning slightly and she was smiling. Xion followed her portrait's eyes and realized that she was looking at a small portrait of Roxas, smiling back at her. Xion felt her face begin to burn, even though there was nobody else here with her. Xion looked over her portrait again—the stained glass was primarily the light purple of a thassala sea shell, but the center part was pale yellow. Light purple and pale yellow…and there were five smaller portraits now: Sora and Axel and…this one was definitely Isa…and Kairi. But the shiniest and most prominent of them was Roxas.

Xion closed her eyes as she thought about the connections to her heart: Sora, whose memories had formed her, who she loved as a brother, even if they had only spoken a tiny handful of times; Axel, who was her protector and her big brother and absolutely wonderful to her; Isa, who had risked so, so much to allow her a chance to live; Kairi…who loved her as a sister, unconditionally; Roxas…her favorite person…the one she cherished…

xxxx

Xion opened her eyes and saw that she was back on the Destiny Islands…it didn't look as if any time had passed at all, though she couldn't see the giant flying Heartless that Roxas had been fighting.

"Funny how that works," Sephiroth said. "How so much can happen in so little a time…I grow impatient waiting for you, no. i."

"That's Xion!" Xion said, holding up Kingdom Key. "Got it memorized?"

Sheran at Sephiorth as fast as her legs could carry her—she saw her Keyblade Armor reshaping over her and it felt warmer and lighter than it ever had before. Sephiroth slashed with his sword just as she struck out with her Keyblade. The next thing Xion knew, she was on all fours again and Sephiroth was crouching.

"You won't budge from the light," Sephiroth said. "The darkness swarms you, surrounds you, consumed you, formed you…and yet you still stand for the light."

It almost sounded like he was asking a question, as if he genuinely couldn't believe that Xion wanted to protect and help others…and atone for all the horrible things she'd done.

"Yes," Xion said, biting the inside of her cheek. She wasn't sure what else she could say. Or even if there was anything else to say in the first place.

"It will mean your destruction," Sephiroth said, almost casually. "You cannot fight what you are. You cannot change. The light will destroy you in the end. You're not fit to wield it…but I cannot sway you. You truly are as stubborn as that old goat ever was."

Sephiroth began to fade away, but it wasn't like when Xemnas or Vanitas or Xehanort had vanished. He didn't chip away. It was more like he turned into dust and then…he just wasn't there anymore. Xion glanced down at the sand where Sephiroth had been standing. There wasn't even a trace of the dust there. Xion let go a breath she hadn't realized she'd been holding. Was he gone…really gone? He'd been haunting her for ages…Xion's arms began to shake.

"Xion!"

Oh, who was she going to have to fight this time? The next thing Xion knew, something—no, someone—was slamming into her, wrapping their arms around her. The person hugging her was taller than she was…but not so much taller that she wasn't pressing her cheek against…Roxas? Oh, Roxas! Xion wrapped her arms around her.

"I saw you fighting," Roxas said. "Are you alright? You're not hurt are you?"

"Not…not bad," Xion said. She leaned against Roxas's shoulder—it was strong and stable and sturdy. "Thank you, Roxas…"

"Thank me?" Roxas asked. "Why would you want to thank me?"

"Roxas! Xion!"

Roxas and Xion broke apart and turned their heads in identical motion. Axel was running up to them from one path and Kairi and Riku were running up from the other. Kairi threw her arms around Xion as soon as she got close enough.

"So what now?" Axel asked. "I got the storm shelter sealed tight so you don't have to worry about anyone else…but where'd Maleficent go?"

"We destroyed her Heartless," Riku said. "But what would she have wanted?"

"The lines of life and death have crossed," Xion said quietly. "Riku…isn't there a cemetery on these islands? Maybe Maleficent has a plan for that."

Riku glanced at Xion and then said a word that Xion didn't know, but it made Kairi hiss "Riku!" A moment later, he started running as fast as he could. Not knowing what else to do, Xion followed.

oooo

Roxas couldn't quite remember where the cemetery was on the Destiny Islands, but that didn't really matter. Riku knew exactly where to go and he led them towards a small lot of land on the other side of the island. Roxas was too worried to even be tired from fighting the Ruler of the Sky. He had no idea what Maleficent was planning now, but from the way Riku held himself, he seemed to have a pretty good idea.

The lot of land was a perfect square, with dozens of stone crosses and slabs. There were a few taller slabs that looked almost like towers, though none of them were even as tall as Axel, so calling them towers sounded wrong. But that was the least of his concerns. Maleficent was standing in the cemetery, looking almost as if she were bored.

"You still dare defy me?" Maleficent said. "I would have thought you have finally learned your place."

"When are you going to get it?" Roxas snapped. "We're not going to stop fighting you!

"One wonders," Maleficent said. "But don't you see? You've already given me all that I need, Roxas."

She stamped her staff on the ground and all over the lot, the slabs began to glow a pale green. Then, bodies began to sprout up from the graves. Men and women, most of them old, but not all. There were men holding long knives and fishing hooks. Maleficent began to laugh as the undead beings—Roxas wasn't sure if he could really call them ghosts. Xion stepped closer to Roxas, her hands on her Keyblade.

"That's…that's the old baker," Kairi said, looking at one of the undead people—it, or he, was wearing an apron and a funny-looking hat and had a brutal looking face. She looked at another undead person, tall and lean and holding what looked almost like a scythe, but the blade was jagged and not as curved. "And that's Hiro—he was the mayor before Daddy got the job."

"These people…" Maleficent said. "The ones you know from ages gone by? They serve me."

The ghostly baker lunged for Kairi, grabbing onto her wrist. Kairi made a noise somewhere between a yelp and a scream and slashed at it with her Keyblade. The baker recoiled and then crouched down. Green fire burned brighter and then it stood back up, as if it had never been hurt in the first place. Roxas grit his teeth. How were they going to fight this if they could just get right back up again?

Wait a moment…there was something familiar about this. In the Land of Dragons, the Huns had been undead, but they hadn't felt any pain. None of the injuries he and Xion and Axel and even Isa had inflicted on them had done anything—not until Xion exploded the mage who had cast the spell in the first place into a million pieces. Was there a spell caster here? Roxas looked left and right, but he couldn't see anyone…but that didn't mean necessarily that there wasn't anyone.

"While it would do me no small amount of pleasure to end you here," Maleficent said. "I have business elsewhere…there's rumors that the worlds in the Realm Between cannot fall to darkness. But that does not mean that every man, woman and child who so foolishly sought sanctuary with that stupid little priest will not know what true suffering is. I have unfinished business with him…and unfinished business with you. So, I think we shall see if there can truly be a Twilight Town, without a town for there to be…"

She slammed her staff down again and all of the undead she'd called up began to glow green again…and then another fissure erupted in the sky. By now it was late afternoon…nearly sunset…twilight. Maleficent hissed and rose above the ground. She cackled again and vanished through the fissure. A moment later, the undead she had called on followed her. Roxas could see Twilight Town through the fissure.

Roxas pressed a hand to his chest. This time was different from the other times he had chased Maleficent and her forces…something was off about all of this. His heart twitched in what might have been nervousness…but that didn't change what had to be done. Roxas held out his Keyblades—Oathkeeper and Oblivion—and then, he leapt up. He heard Xion give a grunt of effort and then leapt through the portal.

A/N: And there we have it, my dearest readers. The latest chapter has been completed. I hope you all enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it!

Once again, I apologize for the delay, my readers. I don't know why it's taking me so much time to get these chapters out to you, especially considering we're nearly done.

Please leave a comment if you're so inclined, my friends. I appreciate each and every one of you!