AN/ there is actually a place known as the Crumbling Island scheduled to be in Kingdom Hearts, but it was removed. For the heck of it, i decided that the final battle was going to take place there. I did my best to describe it... however... I'm afraid I didn't do too well.

if you need a picture of it, go to the Kingdom Hearts Wiki and search "crumbling island" you SHOULD find a picture

Chapter 30: Shattered Worlds

Riku dealt the final blow, and then pulled back. Sora fell to his knees, and then disappeared altogether, leaving his Keyblade behind. "Sora!" Riku shouted, but it was no use.

"Don't bother," Ansem laughed. Riku gasped, turning around. Ansem stood behind him. And it was actually Ansem, this time, Sora was gone. "You're voice can no longer reach him where he is."

Riku swallowed, glaring at Ansem. "What have you done with him?" he asked angrily.

"What have I done?" Ansem laughed. "I have done nothing. He simply stopped resisting his inevitable fate: to fade back into darkness!"

Riku shook his head. "Sora wouldn't give up that easily," he said. "And neither will I!" he rushed forward, blade drawn. Ansem knocked him back, laughing. His blade flew out of his grasp.

"Fighting it is futile; this world will soon fall into darkness. There is nothing you can do about it!"

Riku groaned, and looked to the side, where Sora's Keyblade lay. I wonder… he thought, getting an idea. "Nothing, eh?" he asked, lunging forward to grab the Keyblade. He quickly turned, aiming the blade at the Keyhole. A beam of light shot out from the Keyblade and hit the Keyhole, and a bright light filled the room.

"Impossible!" Ansem gasped.

Riku smirked, and Sora's Keyblade vanished from his hand. That was easy. Almost… too easy.

Ansem glared at him, obviously no longer amused. "Insolent brat!" he shouted. Darkness filled the room. Riku turned away, as the tides of darkness beat restlessly at him. Finally, they cleared, and he found himself in another world entirely.

The area was cavernous, the walls purple, towering high above him. The walls were separated into many ledges. Little streams of water ran down from the ceiling, like little waterfalls, running off the ledges to the ground. There was a large hole in the ceiling that stared up at the sky. The sky was completely filled with clouds. But the clouds parted, and a small sliver of moonlight shone down.

The moonbeam fell on Sora's Keyblade, which stood embedded in the ground. The thorns snaked from the blade to the world around it, anchoring it in place. Riku looked at it curiously. A hand suddenly reached out and grabbed the hilt of the blade. Energy shot through the blade, and from the blade to the thorns. The thorns sprung to life, and snaked through the world, taking root in various places.

Riku looked up, and gasped: "Sora!" However, he had a feeling that this wasn't really Sora. He quickly got to his feet.

"Take a look at this place." The words came from Sora's mouth, however, it wasn't Sora's voice. The voice was the clear, sharp, and cold voice of Ansem. "This place reflects the heart of your friend. Look at it, and then tell me, do you see any hope for him?"

Riku grunted, not wanting to answer the question.

Ansem laughed, and then, clearly satisfied that his thorns had done enough, let go of Sora's Keyblade and took a step back. Sora's form flickered, and it changed to that of Ansem's. Riku quickly drew his blade.

"Fight me all you want, it won't do anything to save him," Ansem laughed, summoning his guardian.

xxx

Namine opened up a dark corridor, and cautiously stuck a hand into it. She had been checking frequently to see if the path to Hollow Bastion had been unblocked, but had never gotten any good results.

However, she was quite surprised when her hand didn't hit a barrier, as it usually did. She had her arm almost completely through before she decided that there probably wasn't a barrier, and just stepped through.

She stepped out into the Grand Hall. She didn't really recognize this area of Hollow Bastion, but it was apparently where she needed to be. How did she know that?

Kairi sat in the middle of the room. She just sat there, a hand hovering over her heart, looking shocked.

"Are you okay?" Namine asked, heading over to her. Kairi looked up.

"I-" she began. She seemed to have trouble forming her mouth around the words. "I don't… I…"

"Where's Sora?" Namine tried.

Kairi shook her head.

Namine swallowed. "Have you seen Riku?"

Kairi shook her head again. "No," she managed to say, this time.

"What… happened?"

"I… I don't know… I don't…" She couldn't really remember. She'd been arguing with Sora, here, in this spot before the Keyhole, and she'd been scared because something was wrong with him, and then… It was a blur. She couldn't piece together anything else.

Namine decided it was best not to ask further. She opened up a dark corridor. "C'mon, let's… let's go."

Kairi nodded, mind still spinning, and followed Namine back to Traverse Town.