AN:I'm sorry I took so long to update holds fists in air stupid spy ware. I hope you love this chapter and there will be many more to come! muttersStupidSchoolmutters

Enjoy :D

Sometime during the night and in the very, very early morning, much to my dismay. I heard a slight noise running inside the castle. I abruptly opened my eyes to sense the new danger that had approached. Out of pure instinct I jumped out of bed and looked around. My eyes searching every corner of the darkness. Only having the light of the moon aiding my search. After looking for signs of danger, I turned on the lights and found out that nothing had been strange in the room. Everything had been the same place as I left it, including the clothes on the floor. I was about to sleep once again when I heard a faint noise…it was something so evil…

"…them…"

I put on my gear minus the small belts only bringing my shoulder plate and leaving the guards on my waist. I brought up the idea of having a sword, but I had to get there in a hurry so my fists had to be my weapon. I quickly opened my door and remembered what Hiromi said. I muttered to myself over and over again about finding the fifth elevator and after a few hastily minutes I had found it. I activated the ICE and quickly sped up to the third floor. I flew open the doors and look to my left and right in the hallway. I had found nothing there. I slowly walked my way, using my experience not making a single sound… As I felt something cold touch my shoulder. I had turned around quickly to see…

Nothing…no one…nothing… was there. Just a long dark hallway, with eerie art and the light of the candles helping me find my way. What I had not noticed was a sudden movement in the wall…the darkness moved to reveal a window glowing brightly with the moonlight. I drew myself closer to the doors which held the sleeping Aerith and Kairi. I was tense and had all my senses on alert as I felt a eerie, darkness showering the hallway. Though, I couldn't pinpoint the location. I knew something, someone was around here. The halls were deathly silent, only the silent chirping of the crickets and the flickering of the candles plagued my ears. I drew closer to her door as I noticed the lights of the bedroom seeping through the cracks of the doors. Like a doorway to heaven I mused. I kept walking till I had reached the front door. My deep breath silent and slow, not to disturb her…or the enemy. My hand slowly reached the knob as I gave it a slight turn. It had been locked. Nothing to worry about here. I vaguely saw a break in so at least she and the child was safe. But, before I turned around the door slowly opened to reveal a person in the doorway. My eyes flinched at the new light, but my eyes adjusted to see a figure…

"Oh! Cloud! What are you doing here? And so early?"

"Aerith! Whew you scared the living crap out of me. I heard some strange sounds upstairs so I had to check on you first before I checked the rest of the castle…"

"Aw, how sweet."

Suddenly, a sudden heat rush came upon me. I wasn't sick or anything like that. But…Aerith was wearing a beautiful pink night gown. I was plagued by unlawful thoughts on what she wore underneath. Soon, I had woken up from the small dream and looked Aerith in the eyes. She blushed at what she noticed she was wearing and quickly close the door only to leave a small crack to show her face.

"Hehe…Would you like to come in for a snack?"

She was red like a cherry…

"Sorry Aerith, but, please, sleep quickly as we leave first thing tomorrow. I will check the rest of halls before I take my leave to rest. Please sleep well…"

"Aww, allright, Goodnight then, Cloud"

She gave me a hug goodnight, forgetting what she had worn.

"Goodnight, Aerith"

I began to walk away into the shadows as I heard her soft voice say…

"Sweet dreams"

And the sound of a click. Happy to know she's fond of me now I thought to myself. I was still on high alert as I searched the rest of the third floor halls. I had seen nothing peculiar besides the eerie almost never ending darkness of the hall. It seemed to never end. I had finally gave up on leaving the candles of the halls to light my way. I slowly put my hand out in front of me and concentrated my thoughts on my palm. Soon, a small flame sparked in my hand and then I had put more concentration into it and soon it was a massive flame. I thanked Squall silently as I remembered this small technique he showed me.

The flame was a sort of magic very rare to find in the world. They said magic had two more stages of -ra and -ga. Which I had no clue whatsoever that meant. The flame would burn those I meant to burn, but to those I let it touch it was cool as midnight air. They had said it was meant so that in battle it could never start fires accidentally. Just leave a charred mark at where it had hit. With the fire in my palms I slowly moved down the west staircases.

The staircases seemed to have been more lit then usual. I had reached the ground floor a few minutes later. I took a slowly step onto the hallway. I looked around and I had seen where my first encounter with the soldiers of the castle and Hiromi. I barely moved I notice a faint noise coming from the basement. I looked down the staircases in an attempt to locate the noise. Just then I noticed a light fading out behind me. It had been one of the candles.

Just then I noticed, the whole hallway had been unlit. The candles had been burned out, but the ones in the staircases had still been lit. And they were very different in length compared to the ones in the hall. They were still newly lit, which means I was right about the sound coming from the ground. I squeezed my right hand with the fire and it engulfed my hand in fire. The glove laid unburned as the fire surrounding my fist slowly faded out. It just became a small glow upon my hand. I slowly made my way to the basement which I found was only the next floor down. It seemed no matter how far this castle goes up there is only a single basement…or so I thought.

I reached the basement floor and reached out to the door knob. I pulled it back slowly to reveal nothing but the ICE systems. My mind told me to go back, but then the sound of a scream…it wasn't a scream for help, but it was a dark scream. Words…could not describe the power and evil behind a scream like that. I soon found myself running onto the first ICE and taking it down the castle as far as I could. I soon found myself phased out of the ICE and onto some a small path to another ten feet high double doors. I heard a small crackle of bolts and electricity…then I heard it…

I heard a scream of a girl.

Without thought, I had rushed in under instinct to the noise. Then I saw it, a huge hall, with cathedral high ceilings. Pained in an eerie gothic, with gargoyles and dark colors around it. Then I saw him. A tall tan man with white hair slick back. It was Ansem… He had in his hands a sleeping girl. I saw him lift her into a slot on the sides and suddenly dark crystals came over her and I swore they froze her into place. I finally notice that in horror, I completely missed 2 other girls inside those icy chambers. One had a gorgeous blonde hair and a beautiful blue gown, the other had a long yellow skirt and a blue shirt with puffy shoulders. The one just placed into a new chamber had a beautiful gown of white with blond hair tightly wrapped in a bun. I looked in horror and disgust and without my mind thinking I opening my bloody mouth…

"ANSEM, What are the fu-"

"WHAT?! Who are you child"

"Tell me first what are you doing"

"Silly child, why should I tell the likes of you my awesome plan. To find the door to darkness"

His laugh…it sounded like his no…they don't look the same. But both are in the same business…evil…

"Release them you fiend"

"Ha, you wish you mortal fool."

And with that ending tons of dark shadows appeared around me. They formed a weird shape of eyes and antennas. Their only words were the few squeaks that they did. Soon I found them jumping all on top of me. God, I wished I had brought my sword with me. I threw quick stance on and let out a huge fireball to a huge group of shadows which vanished on contact. I started to run from the group gathering them all into a line.

Then I had started my offensive…

The first few fell down with a quick sweep of my legs. On the ground a few jumped over my kick and attempted to hit me over it which I replied to with a uppercut smoothly put into right after the sweep. Soon I had them all around me and I had been punching, kicking and twirling my way through the darkness. But I soon realized that the odds were heavily in their favor. From only 10 dark figures to more then 50, but I couldn't give up. I started fighting and kicking my way through the endless clouds of dark figures. Five ran behind to try to tackle me, but I ran up a wall and kicked a few on my way down and had roundhouse kicked the few that were still in the air. But for every one I killed three more had been replaced and soon I had found myself on one knee on the ground. I had been surrounded by more then 100 dark figures when Ansem faced me and looked at me straight into the eyes…

"Foolish mortal, you know you could not win. I should finish you off right now. But I won't. Not out of mercy of such a pitiless foul, but you shall suffer as everyone will. Slow, painful, and in a blink of an eye"

He sounded like him again. I couldn't take anymore of it. Using my anger to fuel my body I had ran to him in a fury of rage and tried to hit him. But my body was crumpled upon as I found myself being piled by hundreds of dark figures. I looked out to him and balled my fists to him…

"It isn't over yet…"

"Foolish mortal, it has already been decided…I'll come back and finish you off"

And with that I blacked out…

I woke up in my bed and jumped out. I had realized what I had went through and many thoughts ran my mind. Had this been a dream? Was it? It had felt too real to be a dream. I rubbed my face and found out that I had been sweating in my sleep. I walked to the bathroom and washed face. I looked at the clock and it said it was early morning. I couldn't go back to sleep after that. Not after a dream like that. I found myself thinking about what he had said. He had said the same exact thing to me. It must've been a dream I thought. It couldn't be real. I have no proof and why did I end up waking up in my bed. My clothes and my gear is were I left it last night. But why did I get a feeling it wasn't a vision or a dream. But it was real…Maybe it was getting to my head. Maybe I'm still freaked out about that incident…I subconsciously rubbed my shoulder…I laid back on the bed and looked up onto the ceiling. I couldn't tell if it was a dream or not. My mind says it was a dream but my heart says it wasn't. Who to acknowledge…

"Ouch"

Something had hit my eye…I had picked it off my head and I stared in shock

"This is Aerith's hair…"