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Crystal's POV: It moved closer… and we saw what it was. It was a Neoshadow holding a huge Invisible's sword. Something else was strange… it was purple.

I heard Autumn's voice ring through the air, "One of my secret weapons have been unleashed!"

"AUTUMN, WHERE ARE YOU! TELL ME WHERE ANSEM IS!" Alex screamed at the top of her lungs. Link and Elleinad clenched their long, sensitive ears. Sora grumbled, "Gosh, I didn't know anyone could be that loud…"

"Ansem? Oh, he's with me," answered Autumn's voice.

"Then where are you, Autumn?" I asked.

"Why should I tell you? Oh, and quit calling me that stupid name. My name is Blackheart." Elleinad crossed her arms and muttered, "I'm tired of talking to disembodied voices…" Then I ran to the side, narrowly missing the broad, blue blade. I angrily slashed at its side, but it turned grey and deflected the blow. "What the..." Blackheart's laugh filled the air,

"They are part Neoshadow, part Invisible, and part Black Fungus, and much smarter. They turn grey when off guard and switch back after. They can also release poison spores and fly." We gaped at the monster, then a dozen more came this way.

"I have an idea!" yelled Elleinad.

She pointed her sword to one and yelled, "Stopga!" The weapon froze in place.

"Yes!" She sliced at it, but it turned grey before she could strike.

"Impossible!" She screamed. While she was still struck with disbelief, the weapon came out of the spell and swiped his sword at her. She jumped back, but the long sword just Barely grazed her shoulder, not enough for anyone to bleed by it… normally. It sliced through the tunic and cut the string on her stitch from when Alex had hurt her. It bled freely again.

She staggered back and clutched the open wound, looking at the weapon like she hated it real badly. She put her sword back in its sheath and switched the Hylian Shield to her right arm. She raised her shield and searched through her pockets. Link jumped high into the air, Master Sword ready to strike. The weapon turned grey. Link smiled and held the sword down too early and switched it to one hand. He threw down his Hylian Shield and grabbed a blue crystal from his pocket. He did this so fast in midair; it took me a while to figure out what happened. He used Nayru's Love and crashed into the weapon's grey shield.

The impact was earsplitting. The blue crystal crushed into the weapon. Nayru's Love was wearing away at the impact spot, but I could see purple at that spot. Link smiled as the Master Sword got closer to the purple skin. With a shrill cry of effort, the weapon knocked its sword hard into Nayru's Love. The fading crystal nearly shattered from the blow. Link winced and clenched his teeth. His sword was so close, and the crystal was to disappear soon. The sword nicked the weapon and then the crystal disappeared. The secret weapon whacked Link far away with the flat of its sword.

Elleinad sighed and said, "Good job, Dad! Good thing I packed a red potion…" She showed Linkher wound, and it was nearly just a scar.

"The problem is that I didn't take any green potions," said Link.

"I didn't either. Oh crud…"

"The best I can manage now is a sword spin magic-wise…" he grumbled.

"I have some red potion left. That sword whacked you hard."

"No, it just knocked me silly. Besides, I don't like the taste of that potion very much. I prefer Lon Lon Milk."

"Yes, but this heals better… Oh well, you're okay and there's still fighting to do!" They stood up and Link retrieved his shield while Elleinad took out her sword.

I fought other Heartless, trying to avoid the secret weapons. I was getting real tired and Alysia and Laska seemed to avoid them too. Alex seemed to be just managing. I was worried, she looked like all her energy was drained and it looked like she found her Crystal Blade to be very heavy. And that one question kept prickling the back of my mind: where was Riku? So many questions… Suddenly I got this huge feeling… the feeling of complete loss… I knew in my heart what was going to happen, but I found no words to say it with. I decided to go with the flow. I fought more Heartless.

Blackheart's POV: I watched the scene below with Ansem not far away. I had released the secret weapons and the military retreated. I was angry at the fact Link even touched one of them. Then a Gargoyle flew up to me. It held an important looking envelope. I opened it and read it quickly. I skipped over all this boring formal stuff until I got nearly to the end of the long letter. My eyes stopped on a single sentence. "The representatives of the world have bestowed upon you the complete control over the planet Earth." I re-read that sentence five times and put the letter down. I had control of the world. It was mine! I cheered and did a victory dance.

"I see the message carried good news," Ansem stated.

"I own the world now!" I yelled. I was so happy I let the rest of my army out to crush my foes by Las Vegas.

Crystal's POV: Suddenly a stampede of Heartless of all kinds swept the valley. Quickly, Alysia lifted me off the ground while Laska did the same to Alex. I struggled in her iron grip.

"Let me go! I have to help my friends; they'll never survive this if we don't do something! LET ME GO!" I yelled.

Alysia said, "We are doing something. No one can survive this if they can't fly. Even airborne Heartless keep low to the ground. Today, we can't save the hearts of your friends. We can only save you two, because you two are the only ones who can change the tide of the war.

"You two are not only the bearers of Aier-Tal and Lat-Reia, but you two are some of the Chosen. The Chosen are those who are prophesized by destiny to carry out the will of the Card Crystals. Laska and I are bound to them by every single molecule in our bodies. We feel their use for the universe coming to an end, and to our end. Until that time comes, the Card Crystals will finish their final task. I'm sure you'll see your friends again. Just believe in yourself and we will prevail. Remember, if you are the only one left, you aren't alone. That doesn't make sense now, but you'll see what I mean in time."

I felt my tears drip to the ground below. I heard familiar screams of pain. They filled the air and I could distinguish each and every one. Elleinad… Velvet… Link… Epona… Sora… Mickey… Donald… Goofy… and many others I recognized. I saw Alex crying too. To my further dismay, I couldn't hear Riku. I saw Alex crying too. It felt so painful, the helplessness… My sad feelings were slowly mixed with anger. I trembled and my Crystal Blade blazed red. I saw that Alex's did too. Something was strange about her sword's glow: It was threaded with black. I had completely forgotten about the Heartless symbol on Lat-Reia.

Then I realized the stampede was thinning, until there was no more except the secret weapons and a Darkside. Perched on the Darkside's shoulder was Blackheart. Laska and Alysia slowly descended. I saw Alex's attention totally towards the ground. I looked down. There was blood smeared in some places, and standing in the center of the battlefield …was Riku. Laska and Alysia's feet touched the ground and they let go of us. Something seemed different about Riku. His blue-green eyes were as dark and empty as a well and he looked just emotionless. He turned his head slowly towards Alex.

Riku's clothes were torn in some places. His hair was very messy and if I hadn't have known better, I'd say he was a corpse that somehow stood and turned its head… a zombie…? This wasn't the Riku we knew. Something was missing, but Alex didn't notice. She rushed over to him. Even though I didn't really want to, I heard every word they said.

Alex's POV: I was so happy to see him! I rushed to him and smiled.

"You're alive! I'm so happy, and where where you all this time? You are a mess."

He stared at me blankly and said in a flat, monotonous tone, "Nothing happened. What do you want?" I blushed and stuffed my hands into my pockets. Now was my chance to say how I felt.

"I… I…"

"You what?" he demanded.

"I really like you," I said with as much feeling as I could.

"You like me," It wasn't a confirmation. "but I do not like you. Who would like some worthless wench like you? You have that crystal sword in your hand that gives you some use, but you are too tall of a girl for anyone. You are a whole two inches taller than me. Who likes a tall person? Your face is ugly too. I don't like you, so rot somewhere else!" He turned around and marched off the other way. I dropped to my knees. I had never taken such a verbal beating in my life, well, not by someone I cared about or that hurt this much. I felt like all he said. I wouldn't be too upset if he rejected me without the comments, but why did he go through with all of that?

I felt worthless. I felt no reason to keep going. His words where emotionless, but they pierced me like needles. I believed everything he said. What was life worth if no one loved you? That sharp, pointy sword in my hand looked really nice, really inviting. Once again, my brain had no control of my actions. I felt a slight bit like I was when I was evil. My mind was screaming protests, but I couldn't stop myself. I flipped the Crystal Blade in my grip so it pointed towards me. I grabbed the handle with both hands and lifted it high…

Crystal's POV: I saw what she was doing and yelled in alarm. Alysia and Laska looked, but I was on her before they reacted. Total instinct took over and I gripped the blade of the sword to stop her from plunging it into her chest. It didn't take long for my hands to start bleeding. My blood fell onto her lap in large, dark red drops.

I ignored the pain as I managed to speak, "What are you doing?"

When she answered she sounded very afraid, "I can't stop myself, Crystal! His words are controlling me…" Laska seized the sword and I let go of it before she pulled it away from Alex. Alysia came over and slapped Alex hard across the face.

"What the heck was that for? She couldn't control herself!" I screamed.

"That's why I slapped her," snapped Alysia. The slap knocked Alex backwards. She laid sprawled on the ground, her blue eyes wide open, breathing heavily, and a painful-looking red mark on her cheek.

"Are you okay?" asked Laska softly. Alex slowly sat up. "Yes, I'm fine. That hurt, but it worked, Alysia. Thank you. I don't know what happened. It's like Riku's words controlled me."

Alysia took a step back and spat on the ground angrily.

"A Full-Body Control spell. It's an evil spell that was used by necromancers to either use their enemies or for fun. It was outlawed and enforced harshly in Oblivion Kingdom. Any mage who was caught was sent to prison for half of their lives. This was a weak one that was done unto you. Riku didn't cast that spell. Riku isn't alive anymore. The thing that kept his body moving and to use the spell through was a fake heart. Riku's heart has been taken, we can tell."

"So do you think Ansem did the spell?" I asked.

"I think all of us are more than positive, Crystal," Laska commented. Alex stared at the ground glumly. I looked around at my surroundings. It was sunset. Most sunsets here were a sight to behold, but the blood-red glare it gave off seemed less than beautiful now. The city behind us was deserted; many people had their lives taken. My brown eyes scanned the area, and they rested on Blackheart sitting on a Darkside far away. Why didn't it seem as if no one else noticed her?

"Don't you guys see Autumn, um… I mean Blackheart?" I asked. "Blackheart, where?" asked Alex, straining her eyes. I pointed in the direction of the girl and the big Heartless. "There's no one there," said Laska flatly. "What are you talking about she's right there!" Alysia looked at me in a weird way in asked, "Can I borrow Aier-Tal?" I nodded and turned the Crystal Blade back into its figurine form and handed it to Alysia. The moment she touched it her eyes widened. "I knew it! Aier-Tal has the power to make things far away look a lot closer!" she grabbed my shoulders as Laska did the same to Alex.

The Knights' wings extended and we accelerated so fast I felt as if I left a part of myself behind. My watering eyes saw that we were flying fast and low to the ground. I could touch it with my foot, but I didn't want to lose it. In a few minutes I could see Blackheart. Alysia leaned forward so far that I was nearly upside-down. I heard an earsplitting sound almost like a flying rock ripping through a paper wall. Alysia and Laska landed and skidded to a stop and let us go. I hadn't even realized it, but Alysia kept a hold on my glasses while we were flying. She handed them and Aier-Tal to me.

I turned around and saw the Darkside with two holes in it fall down. Blackheart flew from its shoulder before it hit the ground. It disappeared and she turned to us.

"Hi. I thought my army already killed off you guys," she said casually.

"Where's Ansem?" Alex demanded. Blackheart smiled and crossed her arms.

"You should pay me more respect. You are talking to the ruler of the world!" she said.

"You took over the world?" we all said in unison.

"Well, look around! No military is fighting me, not even to defend the city. Why do you think they retreated? Nearly every living human being in the world recognizes me as their ruler, whether they like it or not. You have to obey me!"

"We don't have to if we don't want to," said Alysia.

"We come from another world," said Laska.

"We don't have to listen to you!" I yelled.

"We can choose to disobey you," said Alex.

Blackheart scowled and yelled, "Fine! I have no choice but to destroy all of you." She snapped her fingers and we somehow ended up in the middle of the city. Five secret weapons appeared. Blackheart sat on a large, floating, dark platform with a black, throne-like chair. Ansem stood beside her, arms crossed. Laska flew to the platform, but a weapon blocked her way. She punched it hard, but it turned gray.

Laska cried out and flew back down. One finger looked broken and her entire hand was red. I held Aier-Tal to it and it healed.

"Thanks." Alysia frowned and said,

"It withstood Laska's punch. How are we ever going to defeat those things?" I turned Aier-Tal into the Crystal Blade.

"How about we fight until we find one?" I proposed.

"Good plan," Alex said sarcastically.

"Hey, it's the best one we got. Let's go for it!" said Laska. So we fought the secret weapons.

Whatever we did, the secret weapons stopped. I noticed that they attacked infrequently and that they couldn't stay gray forever. Maybe that was its weakness? I swung my sword repeatedly at a secret weapon. It seemed to strain to keep the gray on after a while. When I thought that it was going to turn back, I lifted my sword high. The weapon caught me off guard and knocked the sword from my hands where it landed far away. "

Oh crap," I cried. I ran out of the way before it could slice me in two. I ran for my sword. I saw Ansem move his hand and mutter something.

I got to it and picked up my sword. I nearly dropped the Crystal Blade; it was much heavier. I could still use it, which was good. I ran to a secret weapon and sliced it from behind while it was distracted by Alysia. It was still purple when I hit it, but my sword glanced off like it was grey. It turned and looked at me. It sliced its blue sword low horizontally. I had no choice but to jump. When I did, it suddenly knocked it up and sent me into the air. I landed on my stomach hard. I rolled over and saw the blue sword coming down. I blocked it and stumbled to my feet. That was close!

Suddenly the secret weapons stopped moving, they froze entirely. Stranger yet, Laska and Alysia weren't moving either. Ansem and Blackheart were moving, but they didn't look surprised. Alex was moving too. She was moving in a different way. Her Crystal Blade shone black and the symbol on Lat-Reia was noticeable, as noticeable as black ink. Alex stumbled and, not letting go of the sword, fell to the ground.

A/N: Ooh… Minor cliffie! And it's also long (with some pointless parts, I know) and on in record time!
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