Chapter Three! (Two?) And Ember's first World! Hope you enjoy it!

And do make sure you go back and re-read the first two chapters as I have made significant changes to the first one and minor changes to the second.

I do not own Kingdom Hearts


Ember made it to the courtyard just in time to see Ven vanishing into the sky. Aqua turned to face her. "We have to stop him!" the new Master cried, almost pleading with the golden eyed Wielder.

"Why? He's not a child. He can take care of himself."

"But…?!"

"Change isn't a bad thing, Aqua." The blunette blinked at hearing her own words repeated to her. Ember turned away from her friend, tapping the gold vaguely wing-like armor on her biceps which activated her armor and encasing herself in the familiar red and gold. A quick motion later, the redhead's Keyblade Rider - a solar surfer - appeared in front of her.

"Ember?!" Aqua protested as the other mounted her Rider.

The dark visor of the fiery armor turned itself to face the other Keybearer. "The Worlds aren't limited to what Eraqus understands." her voice was slightly distorted by the helmet. "And his ways are not the only right ones."

"What are you saying?"

"Good luck, Aqua." Was her only response as the solar surfer's jets flared and Ember shot into the sky, tilting the sail to aim herself, and disappeared.

Ember took a deep breath as the portal closed behind her- it had been a long time since she had traveled the Lanes Between; the last time she had done this was the day she and Ven came to the Land of Departure. It was kind of nice to be wrapped in a cloak of Darkness again, the Light of her armor offering the perfect dichotomy to her surroundings.

Her Wayfinder pulsed slightly, meaning that one of her friends had activated their own, and she cursed Xehanort silently. These charms were not meant to be used in this way… Their connection wasn't ready to be strained in such a way. "That madman just had to come and shake things up, didn't he?" Ember growled, her hands tightening from their previously relaxed grip on the sail.

She had her own path to follow… Her dreams had been telling her that for months. But Ven was in danger, Terra was struggling with his darkness, and Aqua was in for a major wake up call. She couldn't abandon them. She just couldn't.

The Light of a World appeared, shining through the purple-black of the Lane, and pulling her from her thoughts. "This is as good a place as any, I suppose." She exited the Lane, passing through the thin barrier that protected the world.

Once on the ground the redhead retracted her armor and banished her Keyblade, looking around at where she was. It was a fairly large wooded area in - where her Keybearer instincts told her - a world called The Castle of Dreams. "Huh." Her Wayfinder pulsed again and she grit her teeth; she was glad that her strength could help her friends, but she absolutely hated that it was necessary.

A thrum of sound lower than any human could hear alerted her to the threat moments before the Unversed appeared. Ember flicked her wrist almost lazily and Flamedancer appeared in her hand, her gold eyes glittered dangerously. "Nice of you to show up," she commented, her voice even. "I could use something to hit." With that she went from stillness to action, moving in an intricate dance of destruction for these shadows that challenge her. And if her eyes gleam a little with madness and her hair crackles purple, well, what Eraqus doesn't know won't hurt him. (Although that's a lie: the unknown is far more dangerous than the known and recognized.) Whilst in the midst of this battle, Ember allowed herself to channel all of her anger and frustration into her spells.

Black flames licked her body as she activated Darkness Inferno; the Command Style no one knew she had. The one she could only practice in secret. The flames around her offered her extra protection from the Unversed's attacks and more flames surrounded her weapon, lengthening it and adding an extra impact to every attack. Finally she planted her Keyblade in the ground and black flames spiraled out with her at the center, obliterating the last of the Unversed in the area. Standing up, only breathing slightly heavily, Ember quietly gathered the munny and other items the Unversed left behind before continuing down the path.

After a short walk, interspersed with a couple small battles, Ember arrived at a fine manor. There was a powerful source of Light in the house, as well as a large amount of Darkness. "But after all…" she murmured. "It is to be expected."

The door opened to reveal a young woman in simple and worn clothes, she seemed startled to see Ember standing there. "Oh, hello." She greeted, a gentle smile on her face.

"Sorry to startle you." Ember apologized to the source of Light she had sensed, not attempting to make a move forward until this woman was comfortable with her presence.

"Oh, no." She assured, shaking her head. "I just wasn't expecting anyone to be out here. My name is Cinderella."

"Ember." the Keybearer shared in kind.

"Cinderella!" A trio of voices called. The sound grated on Ember's ears. The blonde woman looked behind her.

"Oh dear. I have to go see what they need. And I have so many other jobs I need to get done…"

It irked Ember when the Darkness used the Light for it's own agenda. Especially when all that manipulation only reinforced the delusion that Darkness was evil. "What if I helped you?" Cinderella's eyes widened at the offer. "I could start on your regular chores while you go see what they need."

"Oh… would you?"

Ember hid her scowl behind a bright smile; was someone offering to help her really that unbelievable to her? What kind of people were these women who kept screaming for the girl? "Of course. Just tell me what to do."

Cinderella led her inside and pointed to a bucket near the stairs. "I've already swept, but the floor needs to be scrubbed. Are you sure you want to-?"

"Cinderella." Ember interrupted gently. "I want to help." Another call came from the upper floors. "Now go see what they want. All that screeching is giving me a headache." Cinderella laughed slightly and rushed up the stairs, calling to whomever was making all that racket.

Once Cinderella was out of sight, Ember turned to the bucket at her feet with her hands on her hips. "Well now. How to go about this…" Getting down on her knees, the redhead picked up the scrub brush and examined it. "The old-fashioned way it is." She knelt down and dunked the brush into tepid water, then paused. "Fire." A gleam of light shone and the water began steaming slightly. "That's better." She dunked the brush again and started on the floor.

Gah. I am never pranking the Master again. Scrubbing the Mastery Room is the worst kind of torture.

You owe us big time, Terra. It was your fault, but all of us got into trouble.

But you have to admit; the look on his face was priceless!

I have to agree with Ven, it was pretty funny. And it wasn't that bad Terra- stop being dramatic.

Lost in her memories, Ember scrubbed the floor with surprising speed. As she looked around at her work a thunk caught her attention and she turned to see a distinctly unpleasant-looking black cat playing in the dustpan and walking all over her freshly cleaned floor. "Oh, no you don't, you little pest. Blizzard!" The cat was encased in a block of ice and she kicked him into a side room before cleaning the mess he had made. "That furball is almost as bad as those harpies."

A knock sounded on the doors and Ember opened them only to get a faceful of trumpet. "Wah, gha?!"

"Special proclamation from the King!" The small messenger announced loudly. She was right here, he didn't need to shout.

"Right. Thanks." She mumbled, taking the envelope he offered her.

Cinderella came down the stairs just as Ember closed the door. "Who was that?"

"Message from the Palace." she responded and handed it to her.

"Oh… I wonder what it says…"

"Open it, then."

Blue eyes widened. "Oh, no. I couldn't do that… this needs to be taken to my step-Mother." She ran back up the stairs. Ember watched her go, pursing her lips; she was about to follow when a crash from outside stole her attention.

"Huh?" Her black boots clicked against the marble stairs as she stepped outside and came face to face with an Unversed two stories tall. It looked like a gypsy dancer with navy skin, yellow eyes, and red clothing. "Alright, " Ember quipped, summoning her Keyblade, "I can spare time for one dance." The Nightmare Dancer weaved hypnotically and Ember narrowed her eyes before moving forward.

"Fire!" She shot blasts of flame at her opponent, making it stumble back badly damaged. Then the color of it's clothing changed, flickering for a moment before settling on a dark blue color. The next barrage of flame, the Dancer didn't even flinch; at least not until Ember decided she was done sniping and slammed the teeth of her Keyblade into its body. "Alright… Fire doesn't work anymore…" She backflipped out of the way of a return attack, feeling a gash open on her arm as it grazed her. "Maybe… Blizzard!"

She quickly fell into a pattern. Once she had figured out the Unversed's game the fight got easier; its clothing changed colors, and which magic attacks worked on it depended on the color: red for Fire, yellow for Thunder, blue for Blizzard, and green for Air.

Maybe ten minutes into the fight, the Dancer's attacks became much faster and she was hit multiple times. "Gah…" she groaned as one hit threw her across the courtyard, she was pretty sure she had cracked a rib. She was falling behind; to win this fight she would need to get faster herself. I wish Aqua was here to back me up. The thought had only barely crossed her mind when her Wayfinder warmed and a wave of energy passed over her, healing her injuries. It felt like Aqua was standing next to her.

Ember smirked; she couldn't believe she had forgotten about the star-charm. But there it was, ready to back her up when she needed it. With their Spellcaster's power sustaining her, Ember launched back into the fight. "Spell Weaver!" She activated Aqua's Command Style and let the energy speed her up. The Dancer fell back under her blows, vanishing into shadow and memory. "Thanks Aqua." Ember whispered as she banished her Keyblade and released the link with her friend.

"Oh Ember!" The woman turned around to see Cinderella coming outside, she appeared excited. "I have the most amazing news!"

"What's up?"

"The Prince is having a ball, and all the young women in the Kingdom are invited! Oh can you just imagine? Dancing at the Palace?"

"It sounds like a lot of fun. Go for it, Cinderella." Ember smiled to see her so happy. "But I've got to go now."

"Oh, do you?"

"Yes. I have duties in other places."

"Well then…" The being of pure Light clasped her hands around Ember's. "Thank you for all your help. And come back to visit someday okay?"

"Absolutely." Ember promised with a grin. "Just promise me that you won't let anyone dim your light. Okay?"

She could tell that her new friend didn't really understand the request, but she nodded anyway. "Of course." A call from inside made her sigh. "I have to go."

"Take care of yourself, Cinderella." Ember grinned and the blond gave her a gossamer hug before running back inside.

Ember looked down at the object that had appeared in her hand. It was a Keychain with a small silver slipper as its charm; etched in blue on the charm was the name Stroke of Midnight. "A new Keyblade?" She murmured, a smile appearing on her face. She slipped the chain into the small pouch on her belt for safekeeping and turned to look at the Palace just visible in the distance.

The Castle of Dreams.

In Ember's experience, oftentimes the name of a World can tell you a lot about the World itself; this World is a place where your greatest power is your belief in your Dreams.

She pulled out her Wayfinder and held it up to the light. "An unbreakable connection…" she whispered. "Someday… everything will be right. I have to believe that."

With that she activated her armor and summoned her Keyblade Rider, vanishing into the Lanes Between once again, heading for whichever World that came next.


So? What did you think? Was the battle scenes good enough? It's kind of hard to write a Video Game as a novel, neh?

Next Chapter: The Dwarf Woodlands

***Wayfinder***