Disclaimer: Characters, names, locations and the 13th Order are all property of Square and/or Disney.

The Discovered Key

Chapter Three
Vim and Vigor

Without a chance to ask just what exactly a 'Keyblade Master' was supposed to be, Roxas found himself rushing after Saix in an attempt to keep up. Whatever he had in mind, Roxas wasn't looking forward to it. His apprehension only grew as he was steered into a spacious room that was filled with several of the other members. He drew to a halt as he glanced around at them all. Obviously this gathering was important enough for them to drop what they were doing and judging from the expressions on the faces of those he could see, something interesting was about to happen.

Roxas had a sinking feeling that something was going to involve him.

"Shouldn't the boy be given proper training first?" An unfamiliar voice spoke from amongst the crowed.

The question went ignored, and Roxas felt someone push him firmly forward into the centre of the group.

"What exactly are you expecting of him, Saix?"

"Is this really necessary?"

He looked between them all, searching for some clue of what was going on as they spoke. Their comments really weren't helping much.

"Some of us are of the opinion that children shouldn't be among the Order's ranks," A female voice sneered.

"Then it's a good job your opinion doesn't count, isn't it?"

The last voice Roxas recognized as Axel's. He was about to cut them all off and ask them what they were talking about, but Saix's next question stopped him.

"Do we have any volunteers?"

Someone was already stepping forward before he'd even finished asking. Their hood remained pulled up, concealing their faces, but Roxas could sense the eagerness. They were a little too eager for his liking.

The 'volunteer' took up a position directly opposite him, holding one hand out to the side. Roxas recoiled, startled, as a scythe took form in it, appearing seemingly from nowhere. He instinctively backed away, shooting desperate glances at the others around him. Now he was starting to get an idea of what they had in mind.

His opponent took a couple of steps toward him, giving the weapon in their hands a few experimental swings as he continued to edge away.

"You can't be serious!" Roxas protested. Did they actually expect him to be able to fight back when he didn't have anything to defend himself with?

"Be careful you don't cut his head off, Marluxia," someone taunted from the side. "The Superior wouldn't be too pleased if our new recruit didn't last a day."

The scythe was jabbed towards him, almost mockingly. This time, Roxas held his ground, his hands clenching at his side. Something glowed in them with a faint light, as two objects appeared, one in each. Roxas held them out in front of him in confusion as he examined them. Both were solid key-shaped weapons; the one in his right jet-black with two wing shapes forming a handle. The other was a total contrast, pure white and not as cruel looking. Where had they just come from?

"Am I seeing double over here, or does he have two?"

Hearing Demyx's surprised comment, Roxas looked up, taking in the row of faces surrounding him. It wasn't just Demyx that was shocked. They all were. All of them apart from Saix… His expression remained perfectly neutral.

Now that he had something to fight back with, Marluxia didn't seem too keen on continuing the test anymore. He turned to face Saix, "There. Now are we done here?"

"Continue."

That was all Roxas needed to hear. They weren't the only ones who wanted to see just what he was capable of. He had no idea where the strange weapons had come from, but he was interested in trying them out.

He twirled both blades expertly in his hands sending small sparks flying as they locked together. Holding both out to his sides, Roxas rushed forward, dragging them across the ground behind him. He swung both forward, aiming to connect with his opponent. Marluxia blocked them both as he held the scythe out lengthwise, but the force of the attack pushed him backwards.

Roxas withdrew slightly to give himself more room; pulling back he sent both weapons cutting through the air again. He hadn't ever seen them before, but using them seemed to come naturally. As the move was blocked, Roxas felt his energy draining. He kneeled on the ground, trying to catch his breath back, unsure of what was causing it. Marluxia didn't seem about to let him have a moment to rest; he moved forward, scythe at the ready. Roxas' eyes narrowed as he watched him approaching; he was taking this little 'test' far too seriously. He wouldn't attack him while something was clearly wrong, would he?

"Don't you think that's enough?"

He heard Axel's voice from the side and tilted his head in that direction to see him stepping forward. Saix's outstretched arm blocked him.

The scythe was arched down towards him; Roxas held one of the key-like weapons out to intercept it.

"That will do."

Hearing Saix's command, Marluxia stopped, moving away. The weapons faded from Roxas' hands as he felt the wave of exhaustion hit him. He blinked up at the others, his vision blurring. He briefly wondered why the use of those odd weapons had worn him out so much before he allowed himself to sink into the gathering shadows.

"Roxas?"

He stirred as he heard the voice calling his name.

"Will you get up already?"

Feeling a flat surface under his back, he realized he was laying on something. He squeezed his eyes together tighter trying to block out the sound.

"Alright, that does it."

Whatever the surface beneath him was, it was titled violently to one side sending him rolling off it and tumbling to the floor. Roxas jolted, sitting upright. Now he was awake, and he wasn't too happy. He spotted a smug Axel standing opposite and glared at him. "Did you have to do that?"

"You were ignoring me."

"Maybe because I didn't want to get up!"

"Don't think you get it easy now just because you had a rough first day."

Roxas frowned, slowly picking himself up from the ground. He had no way of telling how long had passed, but judging from Axel's comment, that particular… incident had happened the pervious day. "What happened?"

"We don't know. You blacked out."

He at least had some vague idea of what may have caused it. "Those things…"

"The Keyblades?"

"Keyblades…" Roxas repeated the word carefully. "Is that what they're called?"

"That's right." Axel nodded. "You're going to have to get used to them. They're not going to be much use if that keeps happening each time."

Roxas shot him an uncertain look. "What exactly are they?"

The question seemed to kill Axel's good mood. His eyes flickered slightly, and then he was turning, leaving. He stopped at the entranceway into the room, looking back, his expression completely normal again. "Are you coming or not?"

"We're going somewhere?"

Axel grinned in reply and started to walk off. Roxas sighed as he followed him. Things would be so much easier if people would just tell him what was going on. He didn't have to wonder where he was being taken this time for long; Axel guided him into one of the larger rooms and faced him. Puzzled, Roxas gave him a blank stare. "And this place is supposed to be, what?"

"You can practice as much as you like here."

"It doesn't look any different to the other rooms…"

"Does it matter?" Axel folded his arms. "Summon them again."

Roxas shook his head uncertainly. "I don't know how."

"Just do what you did last time."

"I'm not sure what I did." He paused, considering. "They just… appeared."

"Try."

Focusing on a mental image of the two weapons, Roxas willed them to emerge. The two Keyblades instantly responded, taking shape in each of his hands.

"That's it. Now try and get rid of them," Axel instructed.

Trying the same thing, only this time willing them to disappear, Roxas smiled, pleased with himself as they both vanished from his grasp.

"You've got it. Good, now let's see what other fancy tricks you can do with them."

He shot him an incredulous look. "You want me to fight you?"

"I didn't say fight." Axel held his hands out, as two red and white Chakrams formed in them, emerging from wisps of black. "Just show me what else you can do."

"Fine." Roxas re-summoned the weapons, finding it easier this time. He was glad to find that the fatigue that had accompanied the use of them earlier didn't seem present anymore.

Giving the weapons a few short swings to help build up a rhythm, he directed a series of lighting fast blows at Axel. The Keyblades connected with his weapons each time. Once the rapid flurry of attacks ended, Roxas backed away. He wasn't even sure how he'd done that.

"Keep going."

Seeing Axel didn't seem to be put off, Roxas followed up with another fierce assault. Feeling the Keyblade lock against one of the circular weapons, he grinned as he moved to bring the other up. "Ha! Let's see…" His boasting was cut off as something swept his legs out from under him, sending him crashing into the ground. He rolled over, glaring up at Axel. "Hey! That wasn't fair."

"That's what you get for been cocky." He offered a hand to help pull him back up.

Roxas rolled his eyes, climbing to his feet on his own. "Cheat."

"That wasn't cheating." Axel smirked at him. "You're just a sore loser."

"So, I need a little practice when it comes to paying attention…"

"I'd say you need a lot of practice."

They both turned around to see the Order's only female member leaning against one of the sidewalls, observing. Once she had their attention, she pushed away from it and wandered over, eyeing Roxas impassively. "Personally, I don't see what the fuss is about." She commented. "I wasn't impressed."

"I could give you a personal demonstration if you like," Roxas offered. "I could go easy on you, what with you being a girl and…" He trailed off, noticing Axel edging away. "…What?"

"I'm just getting out of range in case she decides to fry you for that comment."

Looking back towards the blonde-haired girl, he realized why. She didn't seem too happy at all. In fact, she looked like she was seething. Roxas cringed. "Eh… Sorry?"

"Sorry? You're sorry?" She repeated, fuming. "I'll show you sorry!"

Deciding he didn't quite feel like giving that demonstration anymore, Roxas hurried over to Axel and ducked behind him. If she was going to fry someone, as he'd put it, then she could fry Axel first.

"I think that's enough for today, Roxas. Time to leave?"

He nodded, quick to agree. "Definitely time to leave."

Roxas was glad she didn't seem too interested in following them, somehow, he got the feeling he'd just gotten on her wrong side.

"I wouldn't worry about Larxene. It wouldn't have mattered what you said, she'd still find a reason to not like you."

At least Axel seemed amused. And the encounter had provided him with a valuable lesson; in future, he really needed to be more careful with what he said.

Over the next few days, Roxas was slowly introduced to the rest of his fellow Order members and shown just what was to be expected of life within the Order. He was given his first real look at the lab area when he was sent to see about getting his own set of Nobodies 'assigned' to him. Roxas wasn't quite sure what that was supposed to mean, so when he was shown the silver creatures, he almost ended up attacking them. A disgusted Vexen explained to him that these Nobodies would follow basic commands and that in time Roxas would be able to summon them as he wished. His group were oddly humanoid in appearance with strangely shaped heads. Each one wielded a blade. Vexen referred to them as 'Samurai Nobodies.'

Not too keen on the labs or Vexen, Roxas tried to avoid the place as much as possible. He found himself taking to practicing whenever he got the chance, either alone, or with those who would volunteer to join him. He focused on perfecting his techniques with the Keyblades and hoping that he would be able to come to understand the weapons better. He quickly discovered that it wasn't only Axel that got edgy whenever he mentioned them; he noticed that when he began questioning the others on what they knew about the Keyblades their attitudes around him changed. The majority of them seemed to be angered by his curiosity, snapping at him and telling him not to bother them with such questions. Others seemed to find a reason to take their leave, and then there was Demyx… Whenever the subject of the Keyblades was brought up around him, Demyx didn't even bother making excuses, instead choosing to flat out flee. At least the others tried to be subtle…

Roxas wasn't sure why the Keyblades were considered a taboo; he only wanted to learn more about them and their reactions only served to intrigue him more, but he soon learned to drop the subject and keep his inquisitiveness to himself. These people were his family now, and they had provided him with a home. He didn't want to get on anyone's bad side, at least not anymore than he already had when it came to some of them.

Despite having only being a member for a short while, Roxas didn't miss the slight change in atmosphere towards the end of his first week. The other members appeared to be buzzing, as though something was ready to happen, but he wasn't aware of anything odd going on.

It wasn't long however, until he learned what exactly it was.

Having finished one of his short practice sessions with Xaldin, Roxas left the training area only to find Axel waiting for him. He gestured for Roxas to follow him and took off down the corridor.

"Where are we going?"

"I thought you might like a change of scenery for a while, so I got permission to show you around the city."

"There's a city here?" He asked as Axel led the way.

"Yep. Not much to see though…"

The response didn't discourage Roxas; he was already walking faster, forcing Axel to pick up his pace to keep up. Finally, he had a chance to look at somewhere other than the castle. It had to be better than seeing the same boring old walls every day.

A maelstrom of angry colours, one of the Dark Corridors, appeared before them to serve as a shortcut to their destination. More comfortable with their methods of getting around than he had been, Roxas entered it without hesitation. He emerged on the opposite side to a dark street, illuminated by flickering signs and pale lights from the surrounding buildings. Each one stretched up to the dismal sky overheard. The entire place had an eerie stillness to it.

Axel moved past him, and Roxas walked with him. The short trek through the city was disheartening; the entire world was clearly void of life. There were no other people to be found there other than themselves. Still, he felt the need to make sure. "Where is everyone?"

"I told you there wasn't much to see."

It hadn't been quite what Roxas had in mind. Was the Order really the only people here? Though he was slowly coming to accept his role alongside the others, he hadn't realized until now how he would have liked the chance to encounter people outside his dysfunctional little 'family'. He stopped, craning his head back and allowing his eyes to wander up the length of one of the nearby skyscrapers. The only object that was visible in the sky was that of an oddly heart-shaped moon; pale yellow that glowed with a vibrant blue rim.

"What is this place?"

Axel followed his gaze to the moon as he replied. "It doesn't have a name. We took to referring to it as The World That Never Was."

Roxas pulled a face. "That's a stupid name." He took one last glance around before turning the way they had come. "What about that world where Zexion first found me? There were people there. Why can't I go back?"

"That place is off limits."

He sighed heavily. "All the interesting stuff is."

With nothing else of interest to look at in the city they returned back to the main castle via one of the vortex-like passageways. Stepping out from it, they located Demyx lurking around one of the corridors. Roxas assumed he was looking to leave the castle himself. Unlike him, the others didn't require permission and were free to come and go as they pleased during their free time.

Spotting them as they arrived back, Demyx greeted them both. Roxas noted that he was acting a little more jittery than usual. "Trying to avoid getting anything done again?"

Demyx gave him a mock hurt look. "Would I do such a thing?" He brightened, smiling. "If you've nothing better to do Roxas, you could always help out."

"Oh no." He shook his head firmly. "I'm not doing your work for you."

"Demyx?"

Upon hearing the voice, Demyx froze. "Uh-oh." He retreated behind Axel, opening a Dark Corridor up. "You didn't see me." With that, he disappeared into it, just as Xigbar rounded the corner ahead.

"Was that Demyx?"

"Demyx? Where?" Axel kept his face carefully blank as he replied, but Roxas smirked.

Xigbar glanced between them before, sighing. "If you do see him, tell him there's some unfinished work of his to be done in the labs."

"Unfinished? You mean he actually started on something?"

"Indeed. I'm as shocked as you are." Xigbar turned away to continue his search, briefly looking back at them. "There's a meeting due to deal with the group split. No one is to leave the castle again until a time for it has been set."

"No problem."

Roxas waited until the older member had left before turning to Axel. "What group split?"

"Something to do with the group separating and going to two different locations while we take care of some research."

"Different locations?" This piece of information caught Roxas' attention. "You mean we'll actually be going somewhere other than this place?"

"That's right. And before you ask, I have no idea where. Wait until the meeting."

Roxas nodded, withholding any further questions. The news was at least somewhat exciting; something different to look forward to. And his very first official meeting? Things were finally starting to get more interesting. So this was what had caused a stir among everyone. Apparently, he was the last to find out about it.

Still, this could actually turn out fun. He just hoped when it came to splitting the members he got placed in a decent group.

Notes: Yay for longish chapter! Title is named after one of the KH2 OST tracks. Ah, I enjoyed writing this one. Order interactions are fun! Especially when we're not really told just how Roxas was with the others (aside from Axel, although honestly, there weren't enough flashbacks with them two for my liking.)

Poor Roxas. It must have sucked spending all that time with the people he got stuck with. Although you just know Xemnas' group had it easy compared to the CoM lot – free blue ice-lollies for all!

And a final note on Roxas' fighting style; he seems more skilled with duel wielding and appears to fight far more aggressively than Sora during the few flashbacks we see of him in action (and that one at the start of TWTNW), but he didn't seem to pay much attention to actually defending himself – hence why he ended up losing to Sora. I suppose all that pent up angst comes in handy though? ;)