Riku, Mickey, and Kairi had been listening to Yen Sid in the Mysterious Tower.

"The great battle with Xehanort is almost upon us. As you know, we must take action to keep the seven pure lights safe, and thus we must hasten to assemble the seven guardians of light. It is time to return to our world the three Keyblade wielders we lost over a decade ago. Ventus, Terra, and Aqua must be saved from their sad end, for they have more to achieve. Following their first battle with Xehanort, Ventus's heart refused to awaken, and so Aqua found a safe location to conceal him. But when she set off in search of her missing other friend, Terra, she fell to a place from which there is no return without outside help," the sorcerer explained, then closed his large eyes and fell into silent thought.

Mickey nodded. "I saw her. In the realm of darkness," he said, beginning his tale.

As Mickey told his story, Aqua walked along a deserted beach. The soft rush of the waves reached her ears. A hazy light hung in the distance—perhaps the setting sun, or perhaps the moon. She had finally arrived at the edge of the darkness, and here she found a solitary figure in a black coat.

I wonder how long it's been since I've seen another person...

Aqua spoke to the figure. "Who are you?"

"Why, hello. It's not often I get visitors." The reply came in a deep, masculine voice.

"Please, call me Aqua. Why are you sitting here all alone in the realm of darkness? How did you end up here?"

She might have been a bit excited to meet someone else; She clutched her chest to calm her racing heart as she peppered him with questions.

"Well...I can tell you this is my second time on these shores. But unfortunately, much like the first, I do not remember who I am or whence I came. Everything was washed away in whatever currents carried me here."

He has no memories?

"That's too bad..." Aqua was a little disappointed. She'd hoped that maybe he would know a way to escape this realm, but it was nothing more than a fleeting dream.

She sat down on the sand a short distance away from the man and confessed, "I know I've been here a long time, wandering through the endless hours...unable to escape..." I'm just a little...tired. She put her arms around her knees.

"You wish to return to your own world?" the man asked quietly.

She gave a small nod, then firmly answered. "It's my friends. I promised I'd be there for them." I want to return—I have to return to the real world, and keep my promise to Ven...

"Your friends?" the man murmured softly, then looked out over the waves and continued. "Somewhere in the scraps of memory I have left, you remind me of a boy I once knew. He is very much like you—true to his friends, and kind. This boy travels to many worlds and fights to keep the light safe."

"Keep the light safe?" Aqua asked back. She recalled her conversation with Mickey.

"What could've brought you here? Has something happened? In the realm of light?"

"It's the Heartless. They've been attacking worlds and taking their hearts. And worlds with no hearts vanish into darkness."

"I've been away too long. Did something happen out there? Are the worlds in danger?"

"Sad to say, they nearly fell to darkness more than once. But at every turn, that boy arrived with Keyblade in hand to save the day."

Keyblade—it had been some time since Aqua heard that term as well. The worlds had been saved by a boy with a Keyblade. And there weren't many who could wield those. Maybe... No, it couldn't be...

"Wait a sec... Is his name Terra or Ven?" Aqua sat up.

"Neither of those, I'm afraid."

"Should've known." Of course—Ven wouldn't wake up that easily. Not without me.

Terra was probably still somewhere out there, but according to Mickey, it had been ten years. He wasn't a boy anymore. Aqua didn't know if he overcame his darkness or not. Each time she came close to giving up, the connection she had with Terra and Ven touched her again. And that had inspired hope in her, that this savior of the worlds could have been either of them.

"How long has it been since I met him? At least a year now, perhaps more... Back then my heart was clouded with vengeance. I did terrible things...both to him and his friends. I brought unhappiness to more lives than one."

The man began recounting his misdeeds. The waves lapped at Aqua's feet.

"I felt something must be done. Was that why? A means of clearing my conscience? Or perhaps out of a sort of scholarly instinct. While the boy slept his long sleep, I hid the results of my research inside him, transplanting the data to where it might best serve a purpose. In fact, I would like to believe…maybe he can set things right. A boy like him who touches so many hearts—he could open the right door and save all those people whose lives I managed to ruin. So many are still waiting for their new beginning, their birth by sleep. Even me...and even you."

Aqua lifted her head and looked at the man. There was something she wanted to know. "What's this boy's name?"

"His name...is...Sora." The man slowly told her.

Tears welled up in Aqua's eyes and ran down her cheeks the moment she heard the name.

Everything is connected. It's all connected, even now.

"Sora." Aqua called his name. She wiped her tears away.

"Tell me, will you stay here?" asked the man in the black coat, his hood still hiding his face.

Aqua did not know who he was, nor that he had once been called Ansem the Wise. "I can't shake the feeling that these waters touch another shore I've visited."

He knew exactly the place she meant. "The Destiny Islands."

Aqua was surprised to hear the name from him. "You've heard of them?" She smiled and looked over at the man.

"Yes. They are quite lovely—a far cry from this wasteland." He was smiling faintly, too. He'd seen them in Sora's memories.

"I'm staying. Someone will come for me." Aqua's gaze turned back to the horizon.

"These waters are the in-between of dark and light, its shores the margins of day and night. They brought you and I together, so why not also you and another?"

The Dark Margin. The place of fated reunions.

"Yes," Aqua agreed.

Both of them returned their eyes to the light beyond the sea.

"I thought...I heard her voice in the distance."

In Yen Sid's Mysterious Tower, King Mickey's long tale came to an end.

Kairi looked over at Riku. His head was still lowered, even after the story was over.

"She sacrificed herself to save me?" His hands balled into fists. He knew Mickey had been behind him when he tried to close the Door to Darkness two years ago, but he'd never heard about the other Keyblade Master. An ache filled his chest, and he pressed the king for answers with uncharacteristic force. "Why did you keep it from me for so long?"

"I had to respect her choice," Mickey replied quietly with a shake of his head.

"What about us? You could've given us a choice. We could have gone and helped her!"

"I know..."

Kairi was still watching them. This was the first time Riku had ever spoken so harshly to Mickey.

But Yen Sid stepped in before he could continue. "Do not be rash, Riku. As Mickey told you clearly in his story, reaching the realm of darkness the first time was not a simple task. And even if we had found a way back in, regrettably none of us possessed the necessary means to get Aqua back out safely. So I forbade Mickey from telling you, let alone going after her."

"Why keep it secret?" Riku asked the sorcerer, still struggling to understand.

Yen Sid's owlish eyes opened even wider "That much is obvious," he replied. "If not you, then certainly Sora would have staged a reckless attempt at a rescue."

Kairi smiled. It was true. That was exactly what Sora would do, just as he had done with her. She stepped toward Yen Sid. "Master, I came here because I wanted to help somehow. What can I do?"

"I have entrusted the wizard Merlin to oversee the training for our new Keyblade wielders, yourself and Lea."

"Lea?" she asked. She didn't know who that was.

"He means Axel," Mickey explained, and Kairi stepped backward in surprise.

"What?!" she yelped.

"He's a regular person now. He even saved Sora for us. You can trust him!" Mickey informed her.

Kairi turned to Riku questioningly, and he nodded back at her.

Sora dashed up the steps of the Mysterious Tower and found his two companions waiting for him in front of the door.

"Okay, start talking!" Donald griped, his tail shaking.

"You were gone a long time. What were ya doin'?" asked Goofy with some concern.

"Heh-heh-heh. Secret," Sora replied with a laugh, then flung the door open. He wasn't about to tell everyone what he was up to, but he was glad to know his friends over there were all right. He noticed the glare Donald was shooting him. "What? I just like to say good-bye to all my friends," he shot back.

"Then do it faster!" Donald snapped.

"I'm here now, right?"

"We have matters to discuss," Yen Sid said, putting a stop to the argument.

"Right." Sora suddenly snapped to attention, stiffening his posture.

Kairi giggled softly at his dramatic reaction.

"K-Kairi!?" He hadn't seen her at first due to being so distracted by Donald. "What are YOU doing here?"

Before she had the chance to answer, Yen Sid spoke up. "I asked for Riku to bring her here."

Sora tilted his head in confusion. So, that was the errand Riku got sent on? But why?

"The great battle with Xehanort is almost upon us. His ultimate goal is to forge the X-blade. Since ancient times, these seven pieces of light have been safeguarded by seven pure-hearted maidens. Xehanort will surely attempt to target the seven hearts of light, and force them into conflict with the new Organization XIII."

"Oh! That must be why you summoned Kari. The Organization's gonna target her again."

But Yen Sid's response was unexpected. "Well, as the original princesses of hearts' time for protecting the pure light has ended, they have passed the light to others. Our enemy must certainly be cognizant of this."

"Passed...the light? Wait, you mean like NEW princesses?"

Sora thought back to the princesses he encountered on his journeys. What was it that made their hearts so special? There was Jasmine. Despite being a commoner, she saw Aladdin's true worth, as a diamond in rough. There was Ariel. Her feelings were powerful enough to unite two worlds: land and sea. And Belle. Her heart was strong enough to look past the Beast's appearance, and change him back into a prince.

And then there was Kairi...

"But Kairi hasn't passed on her power. Is she one of the new seven?" Sora asked uneasily.

"She must be. But still, she chose to wield a Keyblade and fight on with us as one of the guardians of light," replied the king.

Sora was speechless. It was even more shocking for him to hear about Kairi training to be a wielder than Lea.

She looked him right in the eye. "I'm not just one of the seven lights anymore. I'm a guardian of light now. I want to get out there and do my part to help. No more waiting for you to come back from your adventures."

Sora fumbled over his words for a few seconds, but had no retort. Kairi was determined to act, and he knew it wasn't his place to deny her that. He then took something out of his pocket.

"Okay. You win. I guess that means you can have this back now." He placed the lucky charm in Kairi's hand as the two held each other's gaze.

Yen Sid couldn't help but smile, but quickly got back down to business. He turned his attention to Riku. "The data from Ansem the Wise may offer us a clue on how to rescue Aqua. Please ask Cid to take a look at it. Chip and Dale may be able to help as well."

Riku respectfully bowed after receiving Yen Sid's order. "Okay. I will."

"Kairi, I'll go too. We can drop you off at Merlin's," said Sora.

"Okay."

Everyone decided to come along to Radiant Garden—Sora, Riku, Kairi, Mickey, Donald, and Goofy.

As Sora was walking through the Marketplace, he noticed the ice cream shop, which was being run by Moogles. Business was booming and the town was more lively than ever.

"I wonder where Scrooge went," Goofy wondered.

"Who knows," muttered Donald.

Whenever they came to Radiant Garden from somewhere, Sora would eat a bar of sea-salt ice cream. Today, all he wanted was to sit and eat ice cream while watching the sunset. He wasn't sure why.

"Let's get some ice cream first!" Sora suggested.

"No! We don't have time!" scolded Donald while stamping his webbed foot.

"Awww..."

Kairi giggled softly. She had eaten some sea-salt ice cream before with Hayner, Pence, and Olette. For some reason it tasted...familiar.

"Oh, yeah! Are you happy to be back in your home world? This is where you came from, right?" Sora asked. "I know you always wanted to come and visit."

She held her head high, taking in the sights. Her face looked so peaceful. "Yeah. It's so pretty here. Just like I remember..."

"It's definitely not 'Hollow Bastion' anymore," Riku added.

"The Restoration Committee's done a great job! Let's go see them!" Sora broke into a dash.

"Hey! Slow down!" Donald yapped.

Before long, Sora flung open the door to a small house located in a corner of Radiant Garden, and a group of familiar faces were there waiting for him.

Yuffie instantly turned around at the sound. "Sora! Donald! Goofy!"

"Howdy, Yuffie!" Goofy waved.

"And Riku and Kairi are here, too." Aerith clasped her hands together.

"And the King," Leon added from the corner, smirking slightly.

"Hey, guys!" Sora was very happy to see them. "You look like you're doing well."

"Never better! And I'm happy to see you're all finally together again," Yuffie pointed out.

Cid was seated at the computer and turned his chair around. "Town's doin' real well, too. Not a Heartless in sight."

"That's great!" Sora looked over at Leon, then cut right to the chase. "So, um, there's something really important we gotta ask you."

"I reckon that's why y'all came here together?" Cid asked.

Sorra nodded. "Do you guys know any Keyblade wielders named Terra, Aqua, or Ventus?"

Leon shared a clueless look with the others, then shook his head. "No." He turned his gaze toward King Mickey. "You were the first Keyblade wielder we ever met."

"So, who are these other Keyblade wielders?" asked Yuffie.

"It's...kind of a long story," Sora answered, scratching his cheek sheepishly.

Mickey chose to answer instead. "They're friends of mine. And they're in trouble. Ansem the Wise put some kind of data inside of Sora's heart. It could hold the clue we need to help them. We were hoping you could help us figure it out."

"We can help, too!" Chip jumped onto Sora's right shoulder.

"Yep! We sure can!" And Dale on the other.

Cid furiously typed away for a long time.

"Cid, you've been looking into the data forever now. You found anything yet?" asked Leon.

Riku turned to Cid, who was sitting at the computer. "Well...it's outside his field of experience."

"Exactly. I'm a science guy, sure. But as far as the workings of the heart go...that ain't my thing."

"So there's been no progress..." Aerith replied, seeming disappointed as well.

"Come on, Cid! Can't you throw us a bone here, please?" Yuffie begged.

Cid spun to face her. "Be quiet!" he barked. "I'm tryin'! I'm this close to somethin', I know it!"

"Cid, you are a million times worse than a broken record!" Yuffie's comeback got a chuckle from everyone.

"What in the—? What in the world is this?!" Cid suddenly exclaimed and jumped to his feet.

Riku and the others peered around him at the screen.

"What is it?"

"This computer, the one in Twilight Town, and the one in the castle are all connected to the same network. They sent me all of their data and I merged it with the stuff I already had, and lookee here," Cid answered and leaned into the screen.

"'Sora data is not updated'? What's that mean?" asked Leon.

Cid sighed. "This computer isn't up to snuff. I'd have to take a look at Ansem the Wise's computer."

"Well, we can head on over to the castle with ya," Mickey suggested.

"Nope. No can do."

"Why not?" Sora demanded.

"Ansem the Wise's apprentices have returned. They're back in the castle now."

Everyone looked at each other when Aerith answered.

"Maybe you should speak with them?" she suggested. "I'm sure they'd know more than we do."

Riku folded his arms. "Can we really expect them to help us, Mickey?"

"Well, I guess we don't exactly have any other options right now."

Kairi was a little uncomfortable at the thought of going to the castle. "Um, is Merlin here?"

Suddenly, there was a flicker of light behind them. The unexpected arrival was the Fairy Godmother, the very one who had used her magic to help Cinderella.

"Fairy Godmother!" Aerith cried with surprise.

"Oh-ho-ho, I hope I didn't startle you," she said cheerily.

"Not at all. What brings you here?" Leon asked the fairy.

"Well, dear, I was asked to come by Merlin. Now, where is... Oh, Kairi! Yes, Kairi is her name," the red one replied, looking around the room.

"Here," she said, walking over to her. "I'm Kairi."

"Why, it's nice to meet you."

"Thank you." She bowed graciously. "Well. Goodbye, everyone."

Everyone said their goodbyes as the Fairy Godmother used a spell to transport herself and Kairi to the Secret Forest.

Sora, Riku, Donald, Goofy, and Mickey all headed to the Postern. The way was open, just as it was when Sora visited the castle on his previous adventure. The group walked through the labyrinthine hallway, opened the door at the end of it, and eventually found themselves in Ansem's Study.

Aeleus and Ienzo were already standing inside the little room, combing through various books and documents on the shelves, just as they had been doing when Lea left. Riku recognized both of them from his time in Castle Oblivion.

Ienzo immediately recognized him, too, and was the first to speak. "Riku." He seemed rather surprised.

Riku remembered his last encounter with him. Back then he wore a dark cloak, and now he wore a white lab coat. But other than that, he looked the same. "You're Zexion."

"That was the name Xemnas gave me. My real name is Ienzo. And this is Aeleus, one of the castle guards."

Riku glanced over at Aeleus and thought back to when he met him as Lexaeus.

A middle-aged man in a white lab coat then walked into the room.

"Even, are you sure it's okay for you to be up and about?" Ienzo asked with concern.

"I'll be fine. I can't stay in bed forever." The man looked pale and sickly.

"You're Vexen, the one who created the Replica of me."

"Please. Call me Even," he said politely.

"What's a...Replica?" Sora had never heard the word before. Or had he? He wasn't sure.

"Oh yeah... You wouldn't remember. The previous Organization XIII developed realistic copies of people. They're so real, in fact, that you'd actually mistake them for people. It felt like I was facing a mirror image of myself." The look in Riku's eyes grew distant for a second, but Sora couldn't guess what he was thinking.

"I find, coursing through you, there is a darkness of formidable power growing! Well worth the trouble of aggravating you. All this excitement has provided me with invaluable data."

"That's because it was your shadow," said Even. "That Replica was created from the data I collected from the darkness in your heart."

Sora was confused. "Shadow? You mean...like a Heartless?"

"Correct. Shadows are the embodiment of the darkness of the heart. Most take the form of Heartless, creatures that act purely on instinct, without a sense of self. Occasionally, a Heartless retains a human form and self-awareness. A self which is opposed to the true self. You could call it an Anti-self. It is the other side of our heart. A mirror image."

"There was only one person we knew of that gave rise to a humanoid shadow, instead of a normal Heartless."

Goofy knew who Ienzo was referring to. "Oh, you must be talkin' about Ansem!"

"Indeed. Xehanort's Heartless," Even reiterated. "The man who called himself Ansem."

Even thought back to the report he wrote entitled 'The Truth About Naminé.'

"Actually, for the longest time, Xehanort was the only one we knew of who gave rise to a humanoid shadow. But then, we met Naminé."

Sora jolted back. "Naminé!? But isn't she Kairi's Nobody?"

Even held a hand to his chin, deep in thought. "Naminé was an anomaly, her heart existing inside your body at the time of her creation."

"No matter how much I change his memory, Sora will never forget Kairi. Memories of me— More false memories of me will just make his feelings for Kairi even stronger than before. Because...I'm the shadow of Kairi."

"A Nobody is the empty shell left behind when one with a strong heart becomes a Heartless," Even intoned with a certain scholarly quality. "She was not a Nobody like we of the Organization were. It would be more accurate to call her Kairi's shadow."

Riku didn't quite understand. Naminé was like my Replica?

Even spoke with obvious passion. "Indeed, shadows are the dark side of our hearts. Anything that's hidden away deep within. Thoughts and feelings that we don't like to admit to, or perhaps are not even aware of. Naminé therefore was most likely the personification of the feelings that were locked away deep within the shadows of Kairi's heart."

Aeleus was a man of few words. He interrupted Even's drawn-out tangent and cut right to the chase. "Xehanort's Heartless, the man you knew as Ansem, was his shadow. And he was defeated by you."

"Yes," replied Even, realizing he was getting distracted with his lectures and hadn't yet asked the most important question. "And our recent recompletion no doubt means Xemnas has been defeated as well. And that is why you all came here, I take it?"

Mickey nodded. "Yup. But Xehanort hasn't been defeated for good. Like you all, he's been recompleted and he's planning to cause more trouble."

Ienzo looked over at Aeleus. "With a man like Xehanort, we had expected as much. Especially since Braig was nowhere to be found."

Mickey could sense that the apprentices might be open to listening, after all. "We're trying to stop him for good. But we need your help."

Riku spoke up next. "We came to ask you about data Ansem the Wise put inside of Sora's heart."

Ienzo was a little surprised. "Data? From Master Ansem?"

"Does that mean you know where he is?" This was the first time Even spoke with emotion, rather than the cool detachment of a scientist.

"No..." Mickey admitted sadly.

The three apprentices looked disappointed.

"I met him in Castle Oblivion," explained Riku, "when he was going by the name 'DiZ'."

Ienzo folded his arms, a sign he was deep in thought. "Right. The intruder in red. To think...that was Master Ansem."

"He told me...he wanted revenge. For his apprentices' betrayal."

Under his long bangs, Ienzo looked crestfallen. "I see."

Even gazed longingly at the large portrait which now rested on the floor beside Ansem the Wise's desk.

Mickey noticed what he was looking at. "I don't remember seeing this portrait when I first met Ansem the Wise. Xehanort musta put this up after he banished him."

Even answered without taking his eyes off the portrait. "Yes. That is correct. Master Ansem had this portrait created to show his affection for Xehanort, and it was hung in his own quarters. After his betrayal, he placed it in here."

Mickey continued, "The last time we saw Ansem was in the organization's world. He used some kind of device to turn Kingdom Hearts into data, and disappeared in the blast. After that, all the hearts were freed."

"So, we have him to thank for our recompletion," Even responded sedately.

"Recently, I dove inside Sora's heart and met a version of Ansem made out of data. He told me that while Sora was asleep, he digitized himself and his research and hid the results inside of him. And that data is supposed to be a clue about how to bring back people who've been lost."

"Then maybe...there's a chance we can bring him back, too." Even sounded hopeful at Riku's words.

Up until now, Organization XIII had been nothing but their enemy. Donald wasn't convinced they could be trusted. "You really want to help him?"

"Xemnas and Xehanort have no hold over us now. We're students of the heart, exactly the same as we were before all of this began," Ienzo told them in a calm voice, trying to dispel everyone's fears.

"Don't forget, Lea's on our side now," Goofy reminded him.

Even's eyes immediately shifted to the floor when Lea was mentioned.

"Um... I have a question." Sora wondered how to phrase it without sounding accusatory. "If you all want to bring Ansem back, why did you decide to go along with Xehanort in the first place?"

Donald wanted to know, too. "He destroyed your home and banished your king."

"Then he stole his research and started callin' himself the real Ansem," Goofy added.

Mickey was on the same page as the others. "I'd like to know that, too. How is it that Organization XIII came to be?"

Even folded his arms. "Well, it's a rather long story."

Sora wasn't worried about that. "We're listening."

"It all started when Master Ansem found a young man lying unconscious in the central square. He had a brilliant and inquisitive mind, and quickly became a student of the heart alongside us. I sensed an...unusual aura about him from the start, but Xehanort was quite kindhearted and sincere. Our master was most fond of him. He treated Xehanort as his own son." The youngest apprentice looked away sadly as Even continued, "I am sure that his betrayal was most painful for him."

Riku thought back to the time he had first introduced himself as 'Ansem'. He pulled his hood down and revealed his face to DiZ; the same one that had betrayed him all those years ago. He had to wonder what was going through DiZ's mind as he burst out laughing.

"When our master found him, he had no memories of his past. This deeply troubled the young man. Our master was moved by his plight and so one day, he decided to perform an experiment, to awaken the memories sleeping deep within his heart. After that, Xehanort's personality completely changed. Master Ansem abruptly ceased all our research into the heart. But Xehanort ignored his wishes. He and Braig, the man you knew as Xigbar, began new experiments, and convinced the rest of us to go along with them."

"But why would you go along with him!?" Sora demanded.

Even then approached a diagram, which was once on wall, but now on the floor. On it was a human figure with some arcane scribbles.

"Back then, over ten years ago, while we were still studying the heart, I began my work on what would later become known as the Replica Program."

That was surprising news to Riku. He figured Xemnas had ordered Vexen to create Replicas after he joined the Organization. He didn't know that he worked on them even as a human. "So, Xemnas wasn't the one who ordered you to make the Replicas?"

"No, he merely coopted my work for his own ends. But I had been making those dolls before Xehanort became an apprentice."

"Why?"

"I thought I would be able to understand the heart if I created one out of data and placed one inside of a doll. All I desired was the freedom to continue my research. All that concerned me was that I completed the perfect human vessel," Even declared, casting his eyes downward at the floor. "I thought that Ansem the Wise refused to nurture my talents. So I cast my lot with Xehanort."

"So, that's why you joined him." Sora felt a little sad for him.

"I'm sorry to say I was mistaken all along. What I thought was intelligence was, in reality, foolishness and stupidity beyond all else. I had lost sight of why I wanted to be clever in the first place. I wanted to be clever because I wanted to be helpful to someone. Before I knew it, I had begun to pursue only intelligence—only research findings. And I feel compelled to say that that was clearly foolish."

"He was a wise ruler of a peaceful world, loved by all the people," Ienzo said sadly. "It was because of him that this town was such a paradise. And...he was like a father to me."

Sora hung his head. "Cid, Leon, Aerith, and Yuffie said he was a wise man. They all believed he died defending people from the Heartless."

"All we can do is look for a way to save him and atone for our sins," Even said solemnly.

"We have friends we want to bring back to this world, just the same as you," said Ienzo. "To do that, we have to work together."

Mickey agreed enthusiastically. "Right!"

"Master Ansem told you this data would help bring back those who've been lost, yes? So who is it that you're trying to bring back? Maybe we can help."

"Three missing Keyblade wielders," Riku replied to Ienzo. "They vanished over a decade ago after a battle with Xehanort."

Ienzo gasped silently as he recalled Xigbar's words.

"How long ago was it... When a bunch of warriors wielding key-shaped swords appeared and unleashed a spectacular battle. And when it was all over, all that was left was a man lying unconscious without his memories. Xemnas—Uh, I mean Xehanort, was found by Ansem right around then, wasn't he?"

When he turned to face Even, he noticed that his face had become pale, even more than usual. Ienzo was well aware that Even hated that place. He refused to go there, even when he urgently needed to talk to Xemnas.

"Even, you don't have to go down there. I—"

"No. I have run from this for long enough."