A/N: Yup, yup. It's me. Doing two chapters at once since I wrote them both rather quickly. Anyway, get back to me with reviews and whatever after you read this chapter. Tell me if you like it, if it bored you, if you don't understand it, whatever. Just so long as it's a review (and NOT a flame!) I don't care.

And yeah, if you didn't read the Author's Notes in the last chapter, this story is dedicated to BlooDy-MaY. I owe you big time: )

Anyway, next chapter please!

Those who dance with Darkness

Chapter II

The once overcast grey sky fell into darkness once more. It began the night… the endless night… which could made darkness look beautiful.

And yet it wasn't.

The skies above left no space for moon nor stars. They had no memory of the once beautiful day. They were a mere carcass… an empty shell, hollow, where light was forgotten and the prince of darkness ruled the earth.

The hopeful smiles on the faces of those who he had sent to pass on still lingered fresh in his mind. They believed they were free. They truly believed they were free from the darkness. And lay beyond was a shimmering light of happiness that could never be disturbed by darkness.

He knew differently.

His legs found it difficult to carry him on his quest through the night but he forced them along, step by step onwards into the eternal night… far into the endless darkness…

… he stumbled.

He fell to his knees, clutching the staff in his hand tightly. Mud went flying into his face at ferocious speeds. The floor dirt covered him front tip to toe…

… a sob.

He picked himself back up, forcing the rest of his sobs away into the depths of his lonely heart. His determined amethyst eyes focused on the road ahead, barely visible in the darkness. He would not fail his quest. He would not give up hope.

And he would not submit to the darkness.

He journeyed on.

The warrior Nakano and his troops marched steadily forward even in the blackest of nights. Rain began to cascade from the darkest of skies but they continued striding forwards. Their quest to destroy Eiri Uesugi and put an end to the darkness may be a long, hard and foolish one but they rode on their dreams, fuelled by loving words of family and friends, all supporting them and wishing them well as they left.

Nakano would not give up just because of one loss, even if he had to go at it alone.

He was a determined and fiery red head who protected all his friends and family and fought for them, believing solely in their wishes and hopes. He cast his dark blue eyes to the sky, hope shining in them like the most precious jewel. He was a believer in the light and all its riches and rewards.

He would fight to the death if he had to.

He believed in his dream for light, and so he lived to banish the darkness.

His reason for life… his reason to hope…

His trusty second captain Fujisaki followed close behind, his expression calm and calculating, his brown eyes lost in deep thought. Fujisaki didn't often loose his cool, but when he did only chaos could follow. But, nonetheless he was a strategizer, and his moves weren't often rash and done without calm and collective thought.

He was also a White Mage.

White Mages were the key to any successful party who wished to bring down darkness. They were useless in terms of battling, but their healing skills surpassed all odds. With a powerful White Mage on your team you had a huge advantage over your opposition. Fujisaki's determination in battle to actually participate using a few black magic spells inspired all who followed both him and Nakano. They were incredibly looked up to.

And yet they were loosing the battle to the darkness.

"Nakano… we lost many lives today…" Fujisaki murmured, almost as if speaking to himself. Nakano nodded.

"It is a shame we couldn't send their souls onto the other side. Unfortunately now thy will become lost in the darkness… their path to the light clouded and hazy… and worst fears confirmed, they may even become Lirui,"

"The Walking Dead…" Fujisaki whispered, staring down at the ground. Nakano gave a short 'hmm', acknowledging the statement but also thinking back to the battlefield. The souls had swarmed everywhere, each one an entity of light being slowly devoured by the darkness that surrounded it. It was horrific to think that there had been nothing they could do. But Nakano knew that even if they'd stayed and battled on, it would have been useless. Eiri Uesugi had won that battle, fair and square. They wouldn't have been able to have done anything anyway, not with all his followers out there. Nakano just thanked the light that their belief had allowed the remaining of them to escape not too badly harmed.

They continued on, eyes full of hope each praying that soon the light would win. Nakano's gaze went skywards.

He would not give up. He would not allow them to loose to the darkness.

A/N:Okay, that was reeeeaaaaaaally bad, but can you blame me? I wrote it during our so-called 'revision time' in between switching SATs papers. I'm stuck for ideas for 'The Shining Light' so I'm just kinda working on this one for the moment. I promise the second an idea hits me, I'll get back on working on it. Be patient: )

If there are bits of this story you don't get, don't hesitate to ask me via reviews. Usually I'd mind, but in this case it is very difficult to keep up with the story, especially since it's set in a fantasy world, but hopefully you'll understand it just by reading.

Well, review!

- Hikari-kun -