Here you go! A nice, big, fat violent chapter for all of you. Enjoy!

Disclaimer: If I owned Kingdom Hearts, I would have to put up with fangirls constantly trying to kidnap the bishies

Phase 10: As Thunder Splits the Sky

Donald was the first to make a move. He summoned forth a series of lightning bolts to rain down on Vincent and Leon.

The duo evaded them with ease, Leon dashing to the left and Vincent leaping to the right. Each planned to deal with different opponents.

The Gunblader fired a volley of fireballs, but Donald evaded and casted Aeroga on himself. Leon charged forward and took several swipes at Donald, quite few of which cut into the duck's skin. The wind of the Aeroga made its own cuts on Leon's arms and face. Then Donald struck with a with a Firega spell at point blank, frying both of them to some extent.

Vincent shot a light blast of sorts at Goofy and Mickey, which knocked them off their feet. Mickey swiftly jumped to his feet, the One Winged Angel in his grasp. He pointed the tip at Vincent as a sphere of flame formed at its tip. With quite a bit of recoil on Mickey's part, the fireball shot forth, the spell itself larger than the King. Vincent quickly leapt out of the way, letting the spell blow up the roof of a house below instead, and zipped towards the King. Goofy sprang right in front of Mickey and let his shield bear Vincent's claw marks. Then Mickey managed to jump around Goofy and nail Vincent in his side. The beast let out a terrible screech, but the wound soon began to heal up. Before either side could plan another move, a dark thunderbolt crashed into between them and blew them back.

The Masters of Light and Darkness clashed overhead, just beyond the clock tower. Every time their Keyblades grinded against one another, sparks of contrasting colors were thrown everywhere, blowing up whatever they might happen to land on. This varied from mailboxes below to allies not so far away. But they didn't think of their allies; they didn't have enough time to think of the others. If one got distracted for just a moment, then he might as well say farewell to the rest of his days.

Sora fired three Firega spells up at Riku. Like before, his were hued blackened maroon instead of just normal spells. Riku was assaulted by all of them at once, creating a deep black smoke all around him. But it was only a moment later when the colorless wings parted the dark cloud, and the Master of Light charged forward and rammed into Sora. Like before, large jolts of power erupted from the clash, and the two of them were thrown in reverse directions. Riku was tossed high into the sky, while Sora crashed into some barrels at the end of an alley below.

Dust obscured all below. Within a succeeding instant, the onyx wings chased away all the filth drifting in the air. Sora was just slightly off the ground when he heard a small, frightened squeal.

There in the corner of the alley was Yuffie. Instead of her usual nonchalant attitude, she cowered in the corner, her shrunken pupil locked onto Sora's true form.

"Uh...heheheheheheheheheheheh..." she whimpered nervously. "Sorry for interrupting you." With that she hastily leapt over the wall and rushed away.

Sora had no time to try to sort this out, as moments later he found himself in another brutal ballet of the Keyblades.

A series of explosions grabbed the attention of Aerith as she wandered through the 1st District. Even though she was on the other side of town, she couldn't easily spot the smoke, sparks, and explosions occurring around the clock tower and beyond.

She didn't have to be told; she could sense it. The power of light was locked in combat with the power of darkness. Behind those powers were beings that represented nothing but themselves. Naturally, she picked up Riku's presence within the light, but to her surprise she also sensed someone familiar in the dark. Just who it was, though, she couldn't quite tell...

As she hurried to the scene, she bumped into Cid. He was walking away from the battle, of all things. She'd think he'd at least watch it.

Aerith's presence seemed to have not yet registered in Cid's mind. His eyes looked kinda dazed, uneasily glancing back at the explosive event occurring behind him.

"What's happening back there!" Aerith asked.

Cid snapped back into reality somewhat and finally noted Aerith's existence. "Oh, hey..."

"What's going on?" she repeated.

"Well, the Master of Light's fighting the Master of Darkness," he replied.

"Yes, I can tell that," she answered in a somewhat irritated voice. "But there's something else to this, you know that."

"Tis an ugly battle,' Cid responded. "I wouldn't recommend going to see it."

Her eyes narrowed. "What do you mean by that? We knew this fight would be ugly from the start."

"Well..." Cid paused. "It's gonna be a lot uglier than I imagined."

Suddenly a panicked Yuffie fell on top of the Gummiship Builder. She immediately sprang back up and looked around frantically.

"What's your problem?" Cid growled.

"Oh, it's...it's nothing...eheheheheheheheheheheh..."she replied nervously, not seeming fine at all.

"What happened?" Aerith asked.

"Uh...um...well...' Yuffie began. "The Master of Darkness...kinda almost fell on top of me."

"Is that it?" Aerith asked.

"Uh...you could say that..." Yuffie replied.

"And just for that you ran off?" Aerith growled. "Just for that you abandoned the battle and fled for your lives?"

They stood silent.

"Why aren't you helping Riku?" she hissed.

More quietness.

"Why aren't you helping him!" she barked.

Only the explosions in the background answered her.

Phase 11: To Still the Storm

Cloud snapped from his deep meditation as a jolt of dark energy crashed especially close to his location on top of Merlin's house. The magic around the house had been repelling attacks from both spectrums of power, but now its strength was draining away.

He sensed them immediately. Both the power themselves and the beings within them.

"Those damn fools," he growled, letting his wings fully reveal themselves. Now one could see that three stripes of white ran down each black wing. There was also an eye shaped spot, white on the outside and black on the inside that was on the edge of each wing. With a few flaps of these majestic wings he was off.

The Masters of Light and Darkness slammed into one another over and over, not caring of the consequences. The sparks born of these collisions dropped down to detonate over some random spot they were never intended for, such as houses and cars. The inhabitants rushed to their Gummi ships, stampeding as if they were wild bulls.

Down below, Donald had nearly gotten himself skewered by Leon's sword. His hat hadn't been so lucky, as it now slipped off the blade in two pieces. The blade itself had tasted blood, yet despite being splashed with quite a bit of the liquid ruby it still craved for more. It wanted to bathe in the crimson of a kill. It gleamed madly in its scarlet coat at the energy crackling above.

Donald began to cast a healing spell on himself when a volley of enchanted ammo flung itself at him. This assault knocked Donald over flat on his back. Leon leapt into the tainted air, his sword pointed straight down. The flames blazing nearby and the smoke that poured from their being gave his blade a harrowing gold hue, swirling with orange and red.

Donald managed to roll out of the way before the blade made its way through his gut, letting it stab the stone ground instead. The blade let out a terrifying screeching sound as it was pulled out of the rock, the light reflecting off its surface glaring at Donald.

The duck made his way up to a rooftop, summoning icicles on the opponent below. The blade bit the frozen shards to harmless dust. As the opponent came ever closer, Donald summoned forth a lightning bolt. Right before the blade could sink into his flesh, Donald unleashed the spell upon the foe. The electricity dazzled the blade as it shot through it, and the opponent crashed down onto the pavement below. Then the foe sprang up once again, the blade more than ready for another chance to kill.

Cloud soared not too far above the rooftops, his pale blue eyes seeming to give off a slight glow as he scanned the ground below. He had to stay wary as to avoid any bursts of energy that may come charging his way. Sometimes he dodged, other times he used an object as a shield, and still other times he guarded himself with his wings, letting them absorb the strayed attack's power.

Soon he spotted Aerith down below, seeming more than a little frustrated as she paced back and forth. The Gummiship maker and the rather short ninja girl stood nearby lost in whatever was going on in their minds. Cloud decided to dive down to see what was happening down there.

The huff of dusted air announced his presence as he arrived, sliding over Aerith and the others. They all focused their attention on the former mercenary.

"Cloud!" Aerith exclaimed, looking very flustered. "Oh, Cloud, the Master of Darkness...it's..."

"Sora?" Cloud replied flatly.

All of them seemed shocked. "Then you knew?"

"Not until about an hour ago," Cloud explained.

"So, ya gonna go off and kill him or are ya gonna go help him?" Cid asked.

"I'm not going to participate in this pointless squabble,' Cloud answered coolly. "Please don't tell me that you guys are planning to."

"Pointless squabble!" Cid snapped, stung by Cloud's cold tone "Our allies are trying to friggin kill each other out there!"

"That's why it's pointless,' Cloud responded. "There they go, each dead set on slaughtering the other, when in the end all they're doing is ripping apart what we stand for."

"And what do ya plan to do about it!" Cid growled.

Cloud set his steady gaze upon Cid. "Where's Kairi while all this mess is going on?"

They paused. Now that he mentioned it, they hadn't put a single thought to Kairi's well-being ever since this schism started to occur.

Cloud flapped his wings and started to rise into the air, sending waves of wind in all directions.

"Hey, where're you going?" Yuffie asked, speaking up for the first time since he had arrived.

"To go find her," Cloud replied. "After all, she's the only one who can straighten out this mess."

As waves of darkness and light crackled like fireworks in the sky, Kairi cowered behind a stack of boxes. She prayed that none of the sparks fall down would happen to drift to her hiding place. What was going on anyway? Why was everyone fighting? Where was Riku? Where was Sora?

One of her questions was answered as she saw the white wings clash with black ones. Feathers rained down from above, some shining with liquid scarlet. Sparks soon came down too, so Kairi was forced to flee her shelter before it got blown up.

She rushed mindlessly down the endless strings of alleys, not caring where she ended up as long as it was fairly safe. She bumped into random people along the way who had the same idea.

So that's what's going on. Riku is fighting the Master of Darkness. But then why are the others trying to kill each another? Shouldn't they be working together?

Maybe the Master of Darkness possessed them. Yes, that's got to be it! Nothing would be too low for the commander of blackness. Taking over minds was probably routine for it. But how could she snap them out of it?

It had scared her, the look on the King's face. Mickey was usually had such kindly eyes, but there they were frozen and narrowed. Goofy also possessed a similar look, though his were not as hard. Most likely he was just following the King's example, the sheep he is...

Of course Vincent hadn't seemed so friendly either. His mouth slightly opened, a harsh growling hiss emitting from his throat, his eyes overcome by a crimson glow, on all fours with one clawed paw up in the air ready to strike...he was much scarier than Mickey, really. But Vincent was always scary, even when he was human. Mickey...Mickey was never supposed to be frightening...

They had stood there at a standstill, pausing to catch their breath. They were completely unaware of her presence not so far away, concealed by a flickering shadow.

Vincent lunged forward, teeth bared wide with the full intention of chomping into the King's arm. All that he was able to taste was the cold metal of Goofy's shield. With an annoyed snarl he leapt back. Goofy charged forward and bashed him on the head with his shield. He tried clawing Goofy's face, but the knight managed to bring his shield back up just in time.

Sensing the king's approaching him from behind, he swept the area around him with his lengthy tail, knocking both of them over. Then he slashed Mickey across the chest before he could react. Vincent was soon greeted with a Keyblade slicing across his face.

After letting out an angry roar let jumped back again. Half-blinded by blood, he randomly spat out energy blasts everywhere, hoping that at least one would hit their targets. All the dust scared up by the explosions obscured the scene.

She tried to call out for them to stop, but all that she got for a reply was an energy blast that exploded the house next to her. She had no choice but to run before the house would fall into the alley.

Kairi leaned against the wall to try to catch her breath. She still had no idea where she was, but most of the buildings were standing at least, even if most were on fire.

"Fine mess this is, huh?" a voice spoke.

Kairi turned to see Cloud emerge from the smoke.

"Cloud!" Kairi exclaimed.

"You allright?" he asked. He let his wings wrap around him as he walked over to her.

"Um...yeah," she responded. "But how come you're not fighting?"

"It's a pointless battle,' Cloud answered.

Kairi gave him a slight glare. "You shouldn't give up to the darkness! No matter what!"

Cloud returned her slightly icy gaze. "That's not the problem. If anything, it's opposite."

"Huh?" she asked.

"People are continuing to rage this war against the darkness, only they will achieve nothing," Cloud explained.

"But if we give up to the Master of Darkness, then-" Kairi began.

"The Master of Darkness is Sora," Cloud interrupted, in an oddly calm tone.

Kairi stared at Cloud like he had just hit her across the cheek. She murmured something, but Cloud was unable to hear it. She set her widened eyes on the ground.

"Wh-wha...' she whispered, not really talking to anyone. "N-no that can't-that can't be right. Not-Not Sora. That can't be right. it can't be...'

She soon found herself meeting with the pavement at her feet, followed by blackness. The last thing she was aware of was Cloud's cussing and hurried footsteps.

"Hey! Hey, you okay?" a voice echoed throughout the darkness.

Kairi stirred to find Cloud looking over her, kneeled down by her side. His wings shaded her from the glare caused by the attacks above.

"Uh...yeah...I guess..." Kairi replied, sitting up. What had happened anyway? Why'd she faint?

Then it all came rushing back to her. Sora. Sora was the Master of Darkness. But how could that be? Sora was so sweet and kind. He'd never fit the bill to command the shadows. No, that couldn't...

"Allright, let me get this out of the way," Cloud began. "Sora is the Master of Darkness, but he's not evil."

Kairi snapped her head back in Cloud's direction.

"Evil and Darkness are two completely different forces,' Cloud explained. "They are independent of one another, contrary to what most people actually think. So just because Sora rules darkness does not mean he's the root of all evil, which would make it useless to kill him if we wanted to stop all evil."

Kairi nodded slowly, more relieved than anything else. "Yeah...yeah, that makes sense."

"But the problem is that quite a few haven't realized that yet,' he continued. "Those people are still trying to take Sora down. Others are readily defending Sora, willing to kill to keep him safe if that need be. That's why everyone's trying to slaughter each other. It's all because we had the wrong target in mind all this time, and some aren't willing to give up the plan."

"But if you knew it was wrong, why didn't you tell them before?" Kairi asked.

"I myself hadn't realized it until recently," Cloud admitted. "By the time I found out, the crevices were already widening."

"But what are we going to do then?" questioned Kairi.

"The plan's pretty simple,' Cloud replied. "I'm going to carry you up to the heart of the conflict."

It wasn't long until Kairi found herself in Cloud's arms, on the same level as the blasts of energy. It crackled all around them, turning the sky into erratic patches and white and black that were ever-shifting. Cloud zigzagged through the air to make sure he wasn't too easy a target. Whenever an attack drew too close, he paused briefly and shielded him and Kairi with his wings. The energy seemed to be soaked in by his wings, then Cloud would dart forward with a new burst of speed.

"But what makes you think I'll be able to help?" she asked. She had no powers of her own; how was she supposed to quell a war?

"Sora likes you. Riku likes you. Hopefully they'll have enough common sense to stop throwing spells around when you're right there," Cloud explained, finally gaining sight of the two winged ones diving around the air.

"And if it doesn't?" Kairi asked, not sure if she wanted to know the answer.

"Then I'll deal with them,' Cloud replied coolly, dodging another pale lightning bolt.

"What! But they'll obliterate you!" Kairi exclaimed.

"Nah, I can handle them,' Cloud assured. "I'm Twilight, after all."

"Huh?" Kairi responded, not quite sure just what he meant by that.

"The Master of Twilight," he clarified.

Kairi's eyes widened a bit. Master of Twilight? Well, I suppose it kinda made sense, with his wings being colored black and white and able to absorb both spectrums of power, but still...

She didn't have too much time to think it over, since she soon found herself in a barrel roll as Cloud evaded a stream of maroon-hued flames.

"Blizzaga!" she heard Riku yell, as a barrage of icicles occurred not far away. They seemed to be intended for a shaded target with darkened wings, but the figure darted away, letting the icicles freeze the building below instead.

As the silhouette surfaced from the shadows, Kairi could see the black jacket, the yellow and just a tad bit too large shoes, and the gravity-defying hair. There was no way around it: that was Sora. She cringed a little. She could see all the blood on them too.

He whipped around to face Riku, his stark yellow eyes glowing slightly against the blackened part of the sky behind him. The very intensity of his gaze sent chills down Kairi's spine.

"Firega!" he yelled, sending down more maroon flames down upon Riku. The Master of Light managed to evade them. The spell fried one side of the clock tower.

"Well, time to play peacemaker,' Cloud sighed as he darted over towards the combatants.