Chapter One: A New Arrival

Sunlight streamed through another window, located right beside her bed. It was as though it were completely trying to shine with all its might directly on her. Rolling over so as to escape the sunlight, a light groan escaped Kairi's lips as she fell splat upon the wood ground. It was painful.

"Ow," was all she muttered. Standing up, she dusted her clothes before blinking at the sight of what she was wearing. It was her new pink dress, the one she had been wearing from yesterday, now slightly wrinkled because she had slept in it. "Hm… I must've forgotten about changing into my night clothes…" Frowning, she ran a slender hand through her silky hair, momentarily taking her time to gaze out one of the two windows in her room. Her stare soon became fixed upon something lying on the beach near the shore, where waves were lapping gently at their legs-

Wait a second. Legs? It was a person! Someone who was washed up onto the shore! Kairi felt herself immediately rush to the door, unlocking it swiftly, before bolting down the stairs, out of the front door. All was done quickly and in a matter of seconds. Running down towards the beach, ignoring the fact that she had neglected to wear sandals so sand would not get into her sneakers, the auburn-haired girl began to shake the limp body of the person.

"Wake up…" she whispered to them. Very soon, eyelids fluttered open to reveal enticing blue eyes. Auburn, red-brown hair flowed past their shoulders, reaching a little beyond them. Kairi soon found herself staring at the person, eyes wide. It was as though she were staring at a reflection of herself, except in different clothes. They were wearing simple black shorts and a white tank top.

"Okay, who are you? Your name?" they asked, shooting up from the ground, crossing their arms in an almost casual manner, blinking innocently at her. Their look changed to an expecting one. "Well?"

"This what you say when I help you?" shot back Kairi, her eyes narrowed at the girl, who was seemingly rude. "I can say that you were almost brought back into the ocean by high tide."

"Yeah, right," countered the girl sarcastically. "You still haven't answered my question you know." An annoyed expression gracing her fragile features, though she was anything but that, the girl impatiently waited for a response. "Oh, and why do you just so happen to be my look-alike? What is it? Coincidence?" she added, more sarcasm coiling around her words

"You're almost prompting for a glaring contest," muttered Kairi. "This is the Destiny Islands. You're the one who just so happened to steal my appearance."

"Right," came the sarcastic retort. Was sarcasm always lacing their words? "My name is Iriak. Did you happen to see that ocean-place and path thing? Made completely of ice, like a bridge, spanning a very long distance over an ocean of saltwater, while more rain, made of saltwater, kept pounding me on the head?" (Iriak is pronounced IE-REE-ACK)

"Why?" questioned Kairi, her interest piqued almost instantly, sapphire eyes flickering with notice. She was curious about what Iriak had been speaking of. An ice bridge… spanning completely over saltwater? Rain that was saltwater as well? What was she playing at? "Never heard or seen it."

"Oh." Iriak looked momentarily disappointed. "What's your name, by the way? You still haven't answered my question from before."

Kairi sighed at Iriak's seemingly perpetual persistence. "It's Kairi. Happy now?"

"Yup. Okay, where to?"

"Why are you asking me?"

"I have no idea about what the heck is happening here," hissed Iriak in monotone. "So just tell me what the heck we're supposed to be doing."

"Well, for starters, you should shower. You smell like fish," said Kairi, wrinkling her nose in disgust. "I don't like the smell of dead fish, okay? Here. Follow me. You can borrow some of my things."

Iriak bowed her head in shame before following Kairi obediently back to her house quietly.

XXXXXXX

"Here," called Kairi from her location at her wardrobe, flinging two articles of clothing over her shoulder at Iriak, who stood near one of the windows. Iriak caught both with ease, examining them.

"Blue jeans and a pink shirt…" she murmured quietly, before looking towards Kairi with a sense of distaste in her eyes. "Do you have a color other than pink?" She totally despised pink. Loathed it. Hated it. Disliked it. You name it.

"Fine." Iriak tossed Kairi the shirt while simultaneously, Kairi threw a black one to her. They both caught the shirts. Iriak nodded contently before heading toward the bathroom to shower. A while later, she emerged, full clothed and her hair wet from when she washed it. She would leave it to dry.

"Wait here, 'kay? I'll be right back," Kairi told her, exiting the room. Iriak shrugged and took a seat at the desk, staring casually out the window.

As Kairi made her way down the stairs, her vision suddenly clouded with whiteness, a sudden headache coming her way. Swaying to and fro, eyes closed, she swayed one last time before she fell forward onto the ground.

XXXXXXX

Kairi opened her eyes, staring upwards into darkness. Yet, though it was dark, it was bright at the same time. She stood up, dusting her clothes, before she took the time to scrutinize her surroundings vigilantly, eyes narrowed with suspicion. A voice shook her out of her thoughts, bringing her ears to begin listening intently.

Kairi, Kairi, Kairi.

"What do you want?" she called out from her position on the stained class platform. It was colorful, random colors splashed on every inch of it, though some patterns looked suspiciously like shapes of the Keyblade, or hearts, heartless, even words.

I have much to tell you. You know of your friend Sora, the Keyblade master?

All Kairi had to do was nod before the voice began to speak again, explaining.

He falls in the realm of captivity. Because of this, the Keyblade brings forth another to wield it, to give him, the original wielder, a chance to be… let us say, "rescued".

"He's… what?" Kairi was rendered speechless by their words, hardly believing them. "No! I won't believe this!" She pounded her fist against the glass, breathing heavily with apprehension. "No!"

Do not fear, child. Destiny will give him chance to continue living if you agree to cooperate with her.

"Wha…what? Whose Destiny?" questioned Kairi instantly, leaving no room for the voice to speak any other words before her own.

She is the mistress of fate… and destiny, like her name states. The keeper of fate and destiny. There are many keepers and guardians of the essences in these worlds, but let us not press that subject.

There was a pause as Kairi frowned. "Continue, please," she said softly and politely, hoping they would tell her more about Sora's location. She needed to have a chance to find him again, or all her hope… all her will to live would be lost. He was the light… the one spark of hope in her soul.

You will be the next keeper of the Keyblade. A mistress of the light. Lighar will be pleased (A/N: Pronounced as LIE-GA-HAR).

"Who is he?"

The keeper of light. You are the keeper of the Keyblade now, one of the many warriors of light. Keep that light within your heart and never let it die out.

The statement confused Kairi, but suddenly, an immense quantity of artillery, though all were definitely Keyblades, covering the ground, all of different shapes and sizes and colors. Every inch of the platform was covered in Keyblade weapons, leaving only enough room for her to walk about the area.

Select your weapon.

Kairi swallowed hard, staring at the abyss of weapons lying before her. She suddenly spotted one that produced a flicker of familiarity in her eyes as she stared at it. "Oathkeeper," she whispered, walking forward. She picked up the Keyblade, looking at it with utter fascination. "How is it here?"

Do you choose the Oathkeeper, the symbol of trust and promise?

The answer was quick. "Yes." The Oathkeeper flashed in her hands, before disappearing. Another flash, and completely floating in the air, all located in a straight line before Kairi, were glowing orbs. Though there weren't many, each was all a different color.

Pick one. Select your magic.

Kairi immediately headed towards the orbs. Interest piqued, she navigated her way around them, picking each one up, hearing the voice tell her what each was, and ask if she wanted it. Declining each time she was asked, she soon spotted the white orb, a unique one. Grasping it, she felt the voice question her again.

Do you choose light?

"Yes." Her voice was firm. She had decided. The orb flashed, blinding her vision momentarily before disappearing.

Your road is set. Destiny has marked you down. Your journey for Sora's release begins now. Use your powers well, child.

XXXXXXX

Groaning, Kairi sat up from her position on the floor, her head throbbing from her fall from one of the bottom stairs. Gasping, she caught sight of drops of blood located in a tiny pool on the ground, realizing why her head hurt so much.

"Ugh… my head hurts so much…" she sighed, clutching her head. "And what they heck was that dream about?"

"Here, Kai," called Iriak's voice as she glided down the stairs, stopping where Kairi sat on the floor. She was holding a bottle of bright green liquid labeled Potion. Kairi nodded, hoping that for now, that showed her thanks as she took the bottle, and downed it. Shuddering at the bitter taste, she closed her eyes, feeling her wound heal.

"Done."

"Thanks," she said, standing up. Turning to Iriak, she opened her mouth to speak, when Iriak cut her off at once.

"The journey begins, huh?" she asked, grinning. "Here we go." She held out her hand, and a dark portal opened up. "I selected the black orb and one of the Keyblades lying on the floor in my dream when I suddenly received that headache." Oblivion appeared in her hand while Oathkeeper appeared in Kairi's.

"Wait… you're going to help me…? But wouldn't you be part of the dark?" asked a confused Kairi, staring at Iriak with an astonished look. "And how do you know about the dream?"

"Don't judge me," hissed Iriak indignantly. "I am a dark warrior of the light, if that makes any sense. Basically, I use dark powers, but am still part of the light. The voice told me that. I had a dream as well. Now let's get going." She gestured toward the dark portal. "First stop will be some place called Traverse Town. That's one of the few places I know about, at least." She walked behind Kairi. "Here we go." She shoved her in, before following.

"We're gonna die, damn it!" mourned Kairi, glaring hatefully at Iriak as they spiraled through darkness, Kairi trembling and Iriak grinning. She was panicking, a scared look on her face. "And it'll be all thanks to you!"

"Sure…" Iriak replied cheekily, sarcasm still apparent. They stopped moving, only to be dumped onto cement floor. Groaning with discomfort, Iriak's expression soon became one of annoyance. "Bumpy landing… I should master this dark power soon," she hissed, standing up as her grip tightened on Oblivion.

Kairi, still holding Oathkeeper, was sprawled on the ground, almost unconscious, and would have probably lied there for another few hours had it not been for Iriak, who sat Kairi up, and screamed in her ear, "WAKE UP, KAIRI!" The poor girl shot up, rubbing her sore ears while she glared at Iriak all the while.

"Up you go," grinned Iriak, giving her a thumbs up. Kairi's only reaction was to roll her eyes before she began walking in the direction of the accessories shop. "Hey, where the heck are you going?" she shouted after her retreating back, and soon began to run to catch up with the pink-clad girl. They both entered the shop.

Immediately, they noticed the point that the entire shop was in ruins, completely destroyed by who-knows-what. Iriak gaped at the mess, before turning around and exiting, a weird song escaping her lips as she left. Kairi, however, lingered behind to examine the mess. Spying a strange glistening of some unknown object near a clutter of broken wood pieces, she stooped, sweeping the object off the ground and into her hand. It was then when she remembered.

It's my lucky charm, be sure to bring it back to me!

Don't worry, I will.

Clutching her head, she swayed slightly, before shaking her head violently, regaining her balance quickly before she strode out of the shop, running into a humming Iriak outside.

"Anything interesting?" asked the auburn-haired girl, her eyebrows arched in question. Kairi sighed and showed her what she had found. All Iriak did was blink. "What the heck is that?"

"Argh, forget it!" cried Kairi, throwing her hands up in exasperation and marched off, a smirking Iriak following her, twirling Oblivion playfully as she followed the stomping Kairi. "Jeez, what a stampeding idiot," sighed Iriak, shrugging.

The two had managed to make their way to the second district, where they were confronted by what seemed like an army of heartless. The two of them sliced through them as best as they could, occasionally using their light and dark powers to fight.

Kairi, busied in a fight against a large group of shadows, ducked as a shadow flew over her head, about to land on the ground, only to be stabbed to its death by Iriak's Oblivion. Doing numerous back flips, Kairi spun around, moving Oathkeeper forward as she quickly slashed it in half, soon vanishing from sight. Turning around, she spotted Iriak stab her Keyblade into the ground, causing powerful spurts of black flame to spray from the ground into the air, one after the other, completely in a straight line. A large group heartless soon made their way around Kairi, separating her from Iriak as the other girl disappeared in the sea of blackness.

"There's no end to this!" Kairi cried out in a muffled voice, destroying a knight that had decided to try its luck, only to find out it had pushed too far when Kairi immediately annihilated it. Another muffled cry was heard from elsewhere, but Kairi could not hear it, as it was lost in the darkness of the night.

She did not know what prompted her to do it, but soon, she found herself thrusting the Oathkeeper in the air, light gathering at its tip, before a beam of light burst from the end continuously. Kairi lowered it, and began pointing the Oathkeeper at the heartless, the beam of light, seeming to go on forever, destroying every heartless it made contact with. Slowly rotating in a full circle before the beam disappeared, she fell to her knees, completely trained of strength, though she knew she was going to have to continue fighting, when another slash instantly told her she wasn't alone.

There were cries coming from nearby, definitely not Iriak's, but nevertheless, coming from people. Slices and explosions were heard, and Kairi could have sworn she heard what sounded like the sound of the loading of a gun. Shaking her head, she took a deep breath before tossing her Keyblade forward, calling, "Strike!" Another voice seemed to shout the same thing just as she did, and she somehow knew that that other voice was Iriak's.

The Keyblade spun in many circles as it flew forward, flying around in a graceful arc as it destroyed every heartless it hit, making a clanging noise as it hit with the thrown Oblivion before soaring around back towards Kairi, the Oblivion flying back towards a hidden Iriak. The two caught their Keyblades at the same time.

More slices and explosions. A loud cry, this time Kairi determined it as masculine, was heard, and all the heartless in the area exploded as she fell forward in exhaustion and fatigue, but not before spying her two saviors, who had Iriak limping beside them.

"Nice to see you again, Kairi." The two people said together, smiling, though it was done wearily, at her.