The day finally gave way to the night, the light to darkness, as the sun sank beneath the calm waves of Destiny Islands.

A silver-haired boy hailing from these very islands stared out at the fading light before narrowing his eyes in disgust at the tranquility of it all, for he'd never find what he craved on this little speck of land. "This world… is just too small…"


Many years later, the same person, now quite old, stared into the stars of the night sky, quietly pitying all other children who would be born and trapped in such a place.

In his arms with an azure-headed girl wrapped in a white sheet, more like a doll than a human as she registered nothing.

"There, you see?" Asked the man, her eyes were open, void of light, her body breathing, just barely. She had no reaction as the man placed her on the trunk of a tree he'd often sat at as a boy. "An empty world, like a prison. I imagine you'll be right at home."

The girl slowly closed her eyes, the sound of the evening tide cradling into slumber, one that she may never be able to awaken from.


The girl sank down, down, down until she at last landed upon a glowing surface. Other than the platform she stood on, the world around her was dark.

Suddenly, a bright light emitted somewhere and a glowing, crystallized orb appeared beside her.

"Who are you…?" The girl asked softly as it slowly floated towards her.

I'm a brand-new heart… I haven't received my name yet…

"A… brand-new heart…?" She repeated, her expression remaining blank. All emotions had been stripped aside from the purest emotion of all, the one that began this story: curiosity. "But… this is my heart… Why are you here…?"

I saw a light shining in the distance… and so, I followed it here…

"That light was mine…" The lost one nodded, placing a hand to her chest. She then looked over to see that one half of her heart had been broken off. That was right… her heart… something had happened to her heart… "My heart is broken… Soon, whatever's left of me will fade along with it…"

Her words echoed as she and seemingly the heart stared at the jagged edges.

What if… you joined your heart with mine…?

It would be nice to be whole once again, plus it would mean she wouldn't fade or lose any other part of herself…

The girl gave a tiny nod,

The young heart glowed before the girl's own heart mended, a sign they were now together.

You won't fade away anymore and one day, you will be able to claim the part you lost. Until then and for far long after, our hearts share an unbreakable connection…

She placed a hand to her chest, feeling thankful tears come to her eyes as a warmth filled her. Thanks to this selfless heart, she would have the chance to reclaim her missing piece, someday. "Thank you…"

It's time to wake up, this isn't a time for lazing around… All we have to do is…

"Open the door."

At their proclamation, the light burst into petals, revealing her heart's true surface of her laying amongst a midnight blue circle with charms lining it.


The old man walked away, leaving the girl to fade away in the peaceful world he'd grown to despise. Suddenly, he felt something, something familiar. Could it be…?

The girl raised her hand to the night sky and in a flash of light, there was what he'd sensed, what he'd hoped for:

"The keyblade!"

The old man smiled as the girl opened her eyes to stare up into the darkness, the spark of life returned as her keyblade lit up the night sky.

How could he have forgotten?

Destiny was never left to chance.


Four Years Later…

A young boy lay awake in his room, staring up at the ceiling as he tried to fall back asleep. He'd been awoken by a horrible vision, he was running as waves of darkness dragged him down, trying to drown him. He reached for his master and friends but they faded away one by one til he was all alone to be swallowed. He narrowed his eyes.

It was a nightmare, one he'd been having for a while now.

Suddenly, something shot by his window. He glanced out the window in shock before smiling. "A meteor shower!"

The boy smushed his face on the window, fogging it up slightly before he decided he needed a better look.

Ventus, known as Ven by his friends, lightly ran past his master's room then past Terra's then Aqua's, careful not to wake anyone.


The boy shoved open the double doors and laughed in excitement as the stars fell faster. He ran out, past the gardens and the training arena. He ran up to the hill they always sat on for stargazing before collapsing to the ground.

"Wow…" He murmured to himself. Meteor showers were quite common here in the Land of Departure, they symbolized change of order, of tradition as worlds naturally reorganized. Staring at the stars, he slowly drifted off into a light sleep.

Suddenly, he felt someone was staring at him and his eyes shot open before he jolted up. "Whoa!"

The young woman with ocean blue hair giggled slightly making him shake his head.

"Gimme a break, Aqua!"

"Ven, you hopeless sleepyhead." Aqua laughed. She crossed her arms in motherly disapproval. "You should've at least brought a blanket!"

"I would've missed the meteor shower if I took any longer." Ven whined slightly. Aqua loved meteor showers too, surely she understood how fleeting they were!

Aqua glanced up at the stars and her smile fell as her eyes widened, her head now stuck looking up.

"You get it now, right, Aqua?" Ven asked hopefully.

She didn't respond, eyes stuck on the stars, entraced by them.

"Aqua?"

"…Mm? Oh…" She blinked out of it then before turning to him, looking as if she'd just awoken from a dream. "It's just, I feel like I've been somewhere before, with a starry sky just like this one."

Somewhere before… The idea worried Ven. Wherever Aqua had come from, it must've not been a good place, the last time he'd asked about it… "Yeah, but you've seen way more meteor showers with us, right?"

"That's right." Aqua smiled gently, ruffling his hair as she sat down beside him. "You, me and Terra, we've been together for a long time now, I'm very grateful for that."

Ven was too. Before Aqua, it had been just Terra and him under Master Eraqus. Aqua had added something to them, a will to get stronger. After all, she had to work four times as hard as them to catch up to Terra's level and her hard work inspired them both to do their very best.

He gazed up at the lights and sighed in wonder. Stars were so beautiful and yet gazing at some made him feel sad. Terra and Aqua always said he was more empathetic than them, but it wasn't like stars had feelings… right? "Aqua… y'ever wonder what stars are?"

Aqua stared up at the night sky again, her face twisting and changing in thoughts, complicated ones by the look of it. "Hmm… Well, they say…"

Just as Ven was about to say forget it, worried she might be having another spell thanks to her past, a voice came to their rescue, just like he always did.

"That every star up there is another world…"

"Terra!" Ven beamed.

The strong young man smiled knowingly and Ven could already tell he liked knowing something Aqua didn't, the two had always had friendly competition between each other, one that fueled their shared dream: to become keyblade masters. "Yep, hard to believe there are so many worlds out there besides our own. The light is their hearts, and it's shining down on us like a million lanterns."

"Huh? I don't get it." Ven muttered.

Terra laughed before giving a shrug, rephrasing it into something he might understand a bit better. "In other words, they're just like Aqua."

This time, it was Aqua's turn to be confused, blushing slightly. "Huh? What do you mean…?"

"Ohhh." Ven drawled. He then frowned. "I still don't get it."

"Something's gotta be wrong if I'm the only one who gets it." Terra teased, hunkering down beside them. "You guys are totally hopeless!"

"Wha-Are not!" Ven cried in slight anger, making Aqua and Terra laugh at his angry face. "Teeerrraa, take it back!"


About an hour later, a calm silence filled the air as they sat close together watching the stars.

"Oh yeah!" Aqua suddenly gasped, standing up. "Terra, you and I have our Mark of Mastery exams tomorrow. I made good luck charms!"

She showed off the glittering trinkets, they were absolutely beautiful charms made of metal and glass, shaped like flowers or maybe stars. She'd clearly worked hard on them.

She tossed the orange one to Terra and the green one to Ven, saving blue for herself.

"I get one too?" Ven asked in surprise. He wasn't the one taking the test tomorrow, certainly they needed the luck more than he did.

"Of course."

Terra smirked to her in teasing, raising his up to the sky. "You're gonna need it, Aqua!"

"Oh, and you aren't?" Aqua retorted, punching him gently in the arm before sitting down beside him.

"Cut it out, you two, you both don't need luck! You're gonna pass that exam with flying colors tomorrow!" Ven assured them. His friends smiled, making his own wider.

"I saw it before in my dream or maybe my memory… a tree with star-shaped fruit. I looked it up in Master's books and it says that the fruit represents an unbreakable connection. Sharing one means you'll always find your way back to each other. I think you're supposed to make it with seashells, but I did the best with what I had."

"So this isn't the real thing?" Ven asked in disappointment. The promise that they'd always be together was just what he needed after the nightmare, the thought it wasn't true was quite upsetting.

"That remains to be seen." Aqua laughed slightly. She then smiled mysteriously at him. "But I did cast a little magic on it…"

"Really? What?" Ven asked in excitement, maybe the promise wasn't gone after all.

"An unbreakable connection!" She repeated, watching the stars twinkle through the glass. "No matter where we go, we'll never truly be apart. And that power will see us through, I know it."

Ven and Terra did the same, each lost in their thoughts.

Was Aqua worried we'd be separated too? Ven thought to himself, glancing to her. I wonder if she's been having weird thoughts lately too…

Before he had the chance to ask though, Terra pocketed the charm and summoned his keyblade. "The exam's tomorrow, anyone wanna spar?"

"I can take 'ya!" Ven grinned, forgetting his worries as he summoned his own.

Ven was known for being both swift and creative in his fighting style, he even wielded his keyblade backhanded.

Even so, Terra had always been stronger than him, like unmovable stone in both heart and body, or so he appeared to be. He'd put everything out on his opponent, fighting with all his strength. He quickly knocked the keyblade out of Ven's hand after only a few strikes. "You've still got a ways to go."

"Aw man!" Ven cried, landing promptly on his bottom. Right, he wasn't strongly-built like Terra, the lightest breeze of change or the whisper of emotion easily able to sway his heart and head due to his empathetic nature. Terra was different, he was one with strong emotions too but was better at keeping them in check, especially around the Master. Ven wished he could be that strong.

"Try me now, Ven." Aqua suggested, summoning her own weapon as Terra left the arena.

Aqua was calm and collected in every fight she had, her attacks were always graceful and dignified. She was the best at magic out of the three of them, using it often as opposed to Terra's brute strength. Not to say she didn't have physical strength too, she could face any type of opponent. She fired off ice after she and Ven parried a few times, tripping him up. "Ven! Are you okay?!"

"Ugh… yeah, I'm okay…" Ven easily got to his feet. How did she do it all so effortlessly after all she'd endured in the past, after being behind even him when she first started? Aqua was a wonder, just like Terra. Ven himself, on the other hand, wasn't sure if he could ever be as good. They were practically born to be keyblade masters, he had to prove to himself he'd been too. "But wow, you guys are gonna clean up at the exam!"

"Speaking of, we ought to get some sleep before it." Aqua reminded them gently, crossing her arms.

Ven nodded sleepily, being tuckered out from the fights.

He and Aqua ran off to the castle, not noticing Terra had stayed behind just a moment longer…

That was the last night they'd spend under the same stars


Far away, another young apprentice was training hard, balancing on an ancient tome as she tried to navigate some rough rapids.

The mouse princess had already faced so much with the loss of her Homeworld so she never backed down from any sort of training her master prepared for her, even if it seemed rather life-threatening. Suddenly, she was sucked down a whirlpool, making her cry out in panic.

When she opened her eyes, she found herself in the familiar tower.

Yen Sid, her keyblade master, nodded to her to come to him. "I regret interrupting your training, Minnie, but I'm afraid I must."

The princess scanned his face and saw worry written all over it. She'd never disappointed him before, was it something she did? "Master?"

"It is just… I cannot shake the feeling something terrible is about to transpire…"

Minnie placed a hand to her heart before glancing out at the stars twinkling in the sky, those were all worlds that could be in grave danger any moment, but never to a degree where her master had to step in. If there was an overwhelming amount of darkness in the worlds, she had to eliminate it. That was the job of a keyblade wielder, after all.