Xehanort stood in the open doorway, staring at the heart of the world. The scent of darkness was comforting, whispering that it would give him the answers he looked for.
He glanced back at the other five scientists arranged behind him, various recording and measuring devices in their hands. Elaeus gave him a nod. "We're ready when you are, Xehanort."
"Good," he answered.
It took only one step for the sense of a floor beneath him to vanish, though he did not fall. Tendrils of darkness rose up, wrapped around him, welcoming him into their embrace. He felt his body fall away from him, too frail to hold him, now empty and useless. Nothing to grieve over, especially when a new body coalesced around him from the darkness, firm and strong. Power coursed through him.
Laughing, he turned to the five mortals watching him, still safe in their world. "Come," he called, reaching out a hand. They looked at each other, unsure at first. "Come," he said again.
Braig was the first to step through.
Cold water dripping on his face, and a hard, even colder, surface under him forced him to wakefulness. Sitting up, he ran a hand through his damp hair. Hollowness ached inside of him, and with a frown he pressed his hand against his chest.
Dimly, he remembered falling back, even as the darkness pulled his heart from him. A shape had formed around his heart, his body abandoned...
My heart is gone, yet I continue. I am not a Heartless, so what strange existence is this? Sounds pulled him from his thoughts – a groan, then a curse.
"What's happened to us?"
They waited in the dark, tiny alley until the being once known as Ienzo appeared, the last to step through the door. Once they were six once more, they set out to explore their new, lamp-lit world.
There are still so many unknown worlds.
Where does true paradise lie, I wonder?
Author's notes: First off, Kairi. The way I've read the Ansem Reports, it sounds like she was sent away after Xehanort became a Heartless, which means it takes place after this ends. I realize that it could be read another way, but that is my views. This is, partly, supported by the fact that Xemnas himself says, "I know nothing of any Kairi." While ten years is a long time, he probably would have remembered a Princess of the Heart if Xehanort had encountered her.
Secondly, a big thank you to my reviewers, especially SilHairGal. It's thrilling to get a review for every chapter the way you've given me, and I hope I don't disappoint you with later stories.
