Chapter 17

As Lea dove into Jayson's sleeping heart, he could hear a mishmash of voices and scenes belting his senses with wildly varying tones and settings. It was a head rush to get through, but once he made it to the platform, it looked… wrong. Most stations had a clear-cut look to them, it was obvious who's heart it was and what their connections were. Jayson's station looked like it was a collage of different people. There were some people with masks - the Foretellers - Lea assumed, and some other faces that he had never seen before, they looked to be around Jayson's age. Then there was Jayson's portrait. He seemed to be screaming, one hand clutching his head as these images began to flow into him, the other hand reaching towards his Keyblade, with another hand closer to gripping it than he was. A door materialized before Lea, and he reluctantly stepped into it. It was a stairway leading down into the darkness below. He summoned his fiery Keyblade, Chakrams on standby as he descended into the pit. He could hear something a bit more clearly, something dark, something evil. He could hear faint screaming coming from further below, it sounded like Jayson, and Lea began to speed his decent. As he began to near the bottom the screaming stopped, and he feared the worst as he turned the final way around and saw Jayson, hair disheveled and kneeling in the center of the station. He was leaning back, staring into the void of nothing that lay before them both. Then he spoke, and his voice was mixed in with that darkness that he had heard earlier.

"You shouldn't have come here, guardian. I wasn't finished with him yet!" The voice made Lea sick to his stomach. "Oh yeah? What have you been doing to my friend!" Jayson chuckled darkly.

"You think you are his friend?! You all abandoned him to this quest alone! With little guidance other than half baked speeches of hearts and the power of friendship. You know nothing of the struggles he has endured, and I will show you all that pain!" As the voice continued to speak Jayson rose in the air and Lea was able to get a good look at the station. It was purple and red, with a horrific being depicted on it, it looked like a nightmarish cat, with blood red claws and wings made of despair. Its eyes held nothing but malice for those who created it. It held the symbol of a nightmare. Jayson screamed once more as those same wings erupted from his back, he flew after Lea, Keyblade readied and tendrils of darkness smoking forth from his body. Lea barely managed to put his Keyblade up in time as Jayson came crashing down into him, he pushed back and slashed but as soon as the blade made contact the darkness healed Jayson. The redhead ran towards Jayson, getting a spell ready to blast him with. "Firaga!" But as soon as the word began to leave his lips Jayson slid around Lea and struck him hard, knocking him close to the edge. He whipped around and saw Jayson staring down at him, his eyes now a sickening red color. He smirked as he raised his blade.

"Not even half a fight. Pitiful." Jayson swung.

"NO! STOP THIS!" A voice exploded forth and another figure was suddenly blocking Jayson with a peculiar Keyblade, purple hilt, gold blade, and a star as its teeth. He didn't seem fully there however, his form something between a physical being and something corporeal. He had white hair, a vest like Jayson's, and a red scarf around his neck. Their blades clashed and for the slightest moment Jayson's eyes changed back. He shook his head and glared at the figure.

"You left me alone for so long! You do not get to come back and showboat! I won't forgive you, not this time!" He pushed off the mysterious boy and Jayson landed on the other side of the station, twitching violently as more smoke expelled itself. Lea staggered upwards and healed himself with a potion.

"So kid, what's your name?" If the boy head Lea, he didn't let it show, he only shook his head and sighed in disappointment. He stepped forward and spoke,

"Jayson, I guess I'll have to beat the darkness out of you. I'm sorry. I truly am, once this is all over, I can explain everything to you. Want to lend me a hand?" The kid turned to Lea, who only nodded in response, then they readied their blades. Jayson dismissed his Keyblade and zig-zagged across the platform, trailing dark fire with it. Anticipating his frontal assault, they both blocked with their blades, staggering Jayson. They used the opportunity to let off a flurry of blows, Lea using fires to burn away at the wings. Jayson only roared in defiance and pushed the two back with wind.

"We can't do this without a plan, is there a weakness we can exploit or something?!" Lea blocked a blow to his back by using a 'Reflega'. The boy thought for a second before holding his hand over his heart.

"Give me strength!" His Keyblade became enveloped in light, and that light was transferred to Lea's as well.

"We use this, overflow him with light to drive the darkness away, let's go!" They charged Jayson one more time, swinging towards his head and feet. He caught both blades as they came down on him.

"Why are you so adamant on trying to stop this!? He came to me and I'm giving him what he wants!"

"You think killing the kid with darkness is what he wants?! YOU'RE INSANE! NOW GIVE ME BACK MY FRIEND!" Lea and the boy pulled their blades back and swung as hard as they could, slicing through the boy in a cross pattern. The beast roared one final time as he was expunged from Jayson. Leaving the boy crumpled on the ground, he was still breathing, but he was weak. Lea healed him with some magic, checking his vitals and making sure they hadn't done too much damage to him.

"Phew, he's safe. Thanks for the assist, so who are y-" As Lea turned to where they boy was before, there was nothing but the empty void staring back at him.

"... you. Jayson recognized him, so I can ask when he's awake. For now, though." He picked Jayson up and slung him over his shoulder, carrying him up the steps he had followed previously. As he ascended to the top, he noticed the look of the station had changed. Now it was a clearer picture of Jayson, in a battle stance, with eight portraits surrounding him closely, he recognized himself, Yen Sid, Aqua, Riku, and Kairi. But he couldn't tell who the other three are, but he was sure that one of them looked like the kid he had fought with earlier. It was strange. The Foretellers bordered around them menacingly. Lea sighed.

"I'm sorry kid, I didn't mean to put so much pressure on you. You'll be fine soon enough, don't worry." And with that everything became brighter for Lea as he woke up with Jayson in his arms.

"-Wake up, Lea!" The redhead was jerked awake by Roxas and Aqua,

"Huh? Wha? Oh yeah, the kid should be fine, something really weird happened though, and I think you should hear this." He quickly explained what had happened while he dove into Jayson's heart and they listened with great intensity. Aqua was silent for a few moments after Lea finished his story.

"We should call the other guardians here and hold a meeting when Jayson wakes up. He obviously knows something we don't, and it tore him up inside. Enough to welcome the beckoning of darkness. Lea, Roxas, please go do this, I'll stay here and wait for Jayson to wake up." The two nodded and did as she asked. Aqua sat down next to the boy, noting how much calmer he was now that the nightmare had been driven away. "I hope you aren't hurting anymore, please rest and recover." She fell asleep sitting there, watching over him and waiting for him to awaken.

GummiPhone Entries:

Lea: A fiery redhead with a heart of gold and an affinity for the element of pyromancy. He puts on a suave, cool demeanor to mask his genuine concern for his friends. He was once a nobody named "Axel" and some people still call him that from time to time.

Aqua: A Keyblade master with blue hair and a good sense of justice. She specializes in magic and her students usually follow down the same path. She is like a mother to her students and she views them as her children.

Roxas: A good friend of Lea and Xion. He keeps to himself most of the time but opens when he's around his friends. He is headstrong and stubborn; He also looks like Ventus.

Xion: Originally a replica using Sora's memories as a catalyst, she grew fond of Lea and Roxas and became her own person despite that. She is as fierce as Roxas and just as timid.

Reflega: Tier three 'Reflect' spell. It creates an orb around the caster and any damages sustained to the orb is reflected onto the person who struck it. Some people (Such as Aqua) can use a smaller form of Reflect when they block to cover their backs.

?: The boy who helped Lea free Jayson from the nightmare in his heart. His Identity is a mystery.