DISCLAIMER: I OWN NOTHING EXCEPT MY ORIGINAL CHARACTERS!

A/N: HEY THERE! HI THERE! HO THERE! YOU'RE AS WELCOME AS CAN BE!

HELLO THERE! I'm BACK - AND IT IS VERY, VERY, VERY SOON! That means, I have ALL OF YOU to Thank for ALL THOSE REVIEWS! I have been Encouraged WELL BEYOND INFINITY TO CONTINUE THIS STORY FURTHER! I'll Admit I have been working ESPECIALLY Hard on this Story as of late. You probably know by now that this is the THIRD CHAPTER I have posted this week!
WHY have these Chapters been posted so quickly? BECAUSE I HAVEN'T FELT LIKE DOING MUCH ELSE TO START WITH!

Actually, I HAVE been playing FINAL FANTASY 8, so I Suppose that Is SOMETHING Else! Except it doesn't DIRECTLY Apply with THIS Story!

So, for those of you who remember what happened in Chapter 41, you're all most-likely Positive the next world is Organization XIII's world. Am I Correct? It also sounds like many of you wish to see Violet return and rescue Sora and Riku, too! Sure sounds like that Original Character of mine has become quite popular! To be Honest, I wasn't exactly expecting such a positive reception for one of my Original Characters. Perhaps I should include a few more in my NEXT STORY! Please Let Me Know If You'd Like To See More Of Them! I Have SEVERAL To Choose From!

Well... I WON'T Spoil ANY of this Chapter for you! I'll Let YOU READ TO FIND OUT FOR YOURSELVES!

Also, I have been preparing a "Story Summary" for the Sequel so I can organize ALL the Story Ideas I have created for it. IF you still wish to see it, make sure there are AT LEAST 107 REVIEWS POSTED BY THE END OF CHAPTER 49! 120 REVIEWS - OR MORE - WILL MEAN I SHALL INCLUDE A "SNEAK PEEK" FOR THE NEXT STORY, TOO! I HAVE Been Considering Writing It In The STYLE Of A "Kingdom Hearts Trailer", But That Will Have To Wait!

So, Without Further Ado, IT'S TIME TO READ TO YOUR HEART'S CONTENT!
PLEASE REVIEW, TOO! REMEMBER WHAT I SAID ABOVE!

CHAPTER 42
The Man In Black's Reflection

The two Keyblade wielders were soaring down the tunnel full of sweet, serene Light. While Sora had closed his eyes and was trying to relax as the tranquility flooded his senses, Riku was unable to notice it. Deep down, the silver-haired seventeen-year-old had been certain it wasn't going to just be the two of them diving through the passage on their way back to the real world. He recalled how Sora and him had both reassured Violet they would all return to Master Yen Sid's tower with her. Now, he was sure they would never be seeing the Angel of Dreams again — except in their dreams, of course! That wasn't enough for Riku.

He sighed deeply. Why did Sora have to accuse Violet of being disloyal to the team? What had caused him to say such hurtful things to the angel? Had the strange guy in the black coat really manipulated the sixteen-year-old Keyblader's Darkness so he could possess the capability to create such outrageous claims? Plus, why would Sora call any angel a "Demon of Nightmares"? It wasn't like him to even think such statements!

Whatever the case, Riku was still struggling to accept the truth: Violet had left the team and would probably never return.

Riku's deep contemplation was suddenly interrupted when the tunnel started filling with Darkness. The lovely sensation of the peaceful Light vanished so abruptly, Sora jolted awake in alarm.

"Huh?!" Sora exclaimed, his eyes darting around the darkened corridor. "What's going on?!"

Riku was about to give a possible answer to his best friend when his Keyblade appeared in his right hand. He stared at it in astonishment. "It must be serious," he replied. "My Keyblade just came to me."

In a small flash of Light, Sora's own Keyblade materialized in his own hand. "Yeah," he agreed. "So did mine."

The two positioned their Keyblades by their sides and swept their eyes around for any sign of trouble. They didn't have to wait long. A strange-looking portal of bubbling Darkness magically formed a short distance down the tunnel. Out came a colossal creature shaped like an octopus. Its head was a dark, blood-like shade of red and its eight tentacles were orange. On its head were a pair of yellowish, crystal eyes that seemed to have been crafted from glass. Riku and Sora stared at the monster both in shock and recognition; they remembered seeing this very creature in the tunnel when it had intercepted their path into Rascal's Dreamland.

"It's that wandering Nightmare!" Sora exclaimed.

"Yeah!" Riku affirmed. He took note of the two eyes upon the creature's head and pointed them out. "Remember, those are the weak spots!"

Sora nodded very rapidly. "Right!" He swiftly positioned his Keyblade in anticipation for the upcoming battle. "Let's clear the way — again!"

As Riku gave a nod in return, Sora rushed forwards and approached the Nightmare's head. The enemy caught sight of the brown-haired Keyblade wielder and reached five of its tentacles to snatch him. Fortunately, Sora had already been captured by the creature's arms before and now knew how to avoid them. He spun himself in the form of a top and dove straight into the enemy's left eye. The crystal-eye shattered in an obnoxious CRASH that echoed throughout the passage.

Riku shook his head; Sora was using the same move Goofy would typically take advantage of in any battle situation.

Sora was beginning his flight away when the octopus sent a series of purple, triangular prisms at him. He tried to swerve out of range, but the prisms remained on course as though they were missiles locked on target.

Fearing his friend was now in trouble, Riku threw his arms to his sides and straightened out his legs. He soared in with such speed, the purple prisms switched targets. As he neared the Nightmare's head, the silver-headed youth positioned his Keyblade forwards and leaned in the same direction. Like he had always witnessed with Mickey, Riku spun as though doing a flip and his Keyblade clobbered the remaining crystal-eye, leaving an empty right eye socket, too.

The Nightmare was stunned long enough for Riku to return to where Sora had retreated. The two gave victorious grins at each other when they noticed the octopus-resembling creature hadn't burst into the normal flurry of transparent bubbles. Instead, it regained concentration on the pair of teenagers and revealed a ninth tentacle from behind. To the alarm of the two Keybladers, the monster's tentacle opened — inside were four additional yellow-colored, crystal eyes made from glass.

Sora could not believe his eyes. "Not again!" he sighed.

Riku shook his head. "This battle's just getting started."

Sora nodded. "And we've not begun to fight it!"

In response to the spikey-haired youth's statement, Riku gave another nod. He started to wonder how many times he had done so in approval of either Sora or Violet's plans-of-action.

The two Keyblade wielders hurried into range of the gigantic Nightmare. As they approached, the monster spotted them and unleashed a pair of purple lasers aimed at each of them. When Sora and Riku quickly swerved to evade the beams, the creature threw its tentacles out and found an enormous meteor sitting in the middle of the passage.

Riku and Sora glanced at each other for a moment. Where had the space rock originated from?

The octopus Nightmare tossed the meteor into its mouth, leaving chunks of debris scattered about nearby. Realizing their enemy was on the verge of unleashing a powerful attack, Riku rushed behind one of the largest chunks. Noticing how Sora was still in the open, he yelled, "Sora! Come over here!"

Hearing his friend's shout, Sora swooped over to where the silver-headed seventeen-year-old was taking cover. He was just in time; the monster spat the meteor back out with such force, it shattered into dust and left a mega shockwave filling the air. The smaller chunks of rock were thrown out of the tunnel while the largest ones remained. Sora and Riku both reappeared from their hiding place and glared at the Nightmare; the creature seemed to be laughing in mockery at their "cowardly reactions".

"Now's our chance!" Riku announced.

"Let's do this!" Sora acknowledged.

Taking advantage of the enemy's distracted state, the pair of Keybladers soared into range of the creature's ninth tentacle. Sora came in so close, he smashed three of the crystal-eyes with one single swing of his weapon. He smiled, grateful the creature's eyes were more fragile than the porcelain bowl and plate he had dropped at his grandma's house at age seven.

A tenth tentacle appeared and seized the spikey, brown-headed teenager. Riku was shocked and filled with alarm. The Nightmare had not been distracted after all; it was awaiting the two to close in so it could strike against its prey. He and Sora had both fallen for the trap and now Sora had been taken prisoner.

Spotting the creature's other eight tentacles reaching for him, Riku immediately dove at the still-open ninth tentacle. He found the last crystal-eye situated on the far socket from his reach. Before the silver-headed teenager could strike it with his Keyblade, his legs were snatched by the Nightmare's eight pursuing tentacles. As he was starting to get dragged away, Riku hurled his weapon at the target. The Keyblade spun as it flew in a straight line at the remaining glowing, yellow eye. A thunderous SMASH filled the air as the translucent, crystal eye was struck and shattered into shards of yellowish glass.

Without any of its eyes to provide direction or regain control of the assault, the octopus-resembling Nightmare started to shrivel up. Sora broke free of the monster's tenth tentacle as Riku's Keyblade returned to his hand in time to slash himself free from the other eight arms. They speedily drifted away from the enemy and turned back in time to see the creature's body releasing the power of Darkness in several spots.

In one final movement, the octopus-shaped Nightmare exploded into an abnormally large flurry of transparent bubbles that shot out from its position like the humungous green laser from the planet-sized space-station in the movie Sora had once seen with Riku when they were twelve. Although he couldn't recall the name of the movie, the spikey-haired teen did remember it was part four of a series. Or was it?

When the bubbles had flown out in all directions, an especially strong shockwave had formed, too. The strength of the vibration was plenty to make Sora and Riku start spinning in place. The bubbles surrounded them a second later, forcing the two to duck and cover their heads. It was all over within two and a half minutes. Riku and Sora looked again with smiles of relief. The Nightmare had been eliminated and the tunnel would be returning to normal very shortly.

"Well," Sora declared happily. "That's that!"

"Yeah," Riku agreed, wiping some sweat off his forehead. "Next stop should be Master Yen Sid's study."

At least they had assumed it should have. When the passage remained dark, the two started to wonder if another Nightmare was still swimming around. The tunnel began getting darker, causing Riku to sniff the air. He gasped; detecting an all-too-familiar scent he would've expected to have not sensed at this point in time.

It was the stench of Darkness…

The tunnel started to end. Sora and Riku glanced at each other with determination. If something or someone was playing a trick on them, they were ready to put a stop to it. The two soared out through the end of the tunnel and beyond. A bright flash flooded their eyesight for a few seconds.

When Sora and Riku both reopened their eyes, the first thing they saw was a towering, black skyscraper rising into the night sky. No stars could be seen in the inky blackness above. The ground they were standing on was a well-paved street. The first floor of the skyscraper contained large, store-front windows, and a shadowed concrete sidewalk separated the building from the street.

As the pair took a minute to survey the remainder of their surroundings, it became clear the street was lined on both sides by skyscrapers of the same design. Some of the building's windows were illuminated by an eerie, yellow light while the rest were dark. A neon sign was located on the outside of several skyscrapers; all of them contained glowing letters.

Shifting their eyesight down the street, they saw a steady incline leading up to where a shiny, white bridge led from the ground and up towards an immense, cylindrical castle with dark-grey paint covering the entire structure. Although several towers were positioned at odd angles and some sections were jutting out at square-shaped landings, Riku and Sora stared in alarm; they instantly recognized the location where they had arrived.

"No way!" Sora exclaimed, struggling to bring out the words. "This is… this is the Organization's world!"

"It looks different," Riku added, noting the castle's peculiar appearance. "But I don't think it's sleeping."

"Yeah," Sora agreed. He started counting on his fingers. He remembered unlocking two keyholes in Traverse Town — one for each universe… one keyhole in Corona… one in Pixie Hollow… one in Rascal's Dreamland… one in The Grid — wait! That world wasn't asleep! Nor was The 100-Acre Wood! But Camelot, the Country of The Musketeers, and the Symphony of Sorcery had been among the Sleeping Worlds. Not including the second keyhole in Traverse Town, The Grid, and The 100-Acre Wood, Sora reached a total of seven Sleeping Keyholes. He knew both Riku and him had both unlocked them.

"We've already unlocked all seven Sleeping Keyholes," the brown-headed youth concluded. "So, we should be awake again and back in the real world."

He gazed up at the castle. "But… why here?"

Riku placed his hand upon his chin in thought. Perhaps there was a connection between all those worlds he had ventured through alongside Sora and Violet. Was there anything they had in common? His eyes lit up, remembering the young man dressed in the black-hooded coat, Ansem, Xemnas, and the other two strange people; the scientist Sora had mentioned and the red-headed young man who often spoke in mysterious riddles. For all Riku knew, they were secret members of Organization XIII — that would certainly explain why he and Sora had ended up in the world of the Nobodies… although it seemed to be in an alternate reality.

"Unless," he finally said. "Those guys in black are behind this entire mess."

Sora's eyes lit up with distress and realization. "Of course!" he exclaimed. "That guy in black! He must've known this was going to happen the whole time!"

Riku nodded before gazing at the castle. "He must be trying to get revenge for the fall of Organization XIII!"

Sora gave a super-fast nod. "He might still be around! Let's split up! Riku, you check out the castle! I'm gonna investigate the city! If you find anyone wearing a black coat, don't let 'em get away — especially not 'him'!"

Riku's froze in astonishment. Sora wanted to "split up" now?! They were in the Organization's world — anything could happen here! Before he could respond, Sora had already sped off down the street. He rapidly faded into the shadows before rounding a corner.

The silver-haired seventeen-year-old was beyond astounded as well as heavily discouraged. Nothing seemed to be working out as of late. First, Sora had driven Violet off the team with a series of unreasonable claims. Next, Riku and Sora had somehow ended up in a completely separate destination than expected. Now, Sora wanted to "split up" so they could track down the young man in the black-hooded coat.

Sure, the spikey-haired Keyblade wielder was thinking along the same lines Pooh had during the search for Christopher Robin back in the cave in The 100-Acre Wood, but there was still a major difference. The cavern had not been filled with the strong Darkness Riku was currently picking up from all around. In addition, the strange figures in the black coats were definitely far more dangerous than Christopher Robin. Nevertheless, it was clear there was no point in trying to get Sora's attention now. He was too far out of range and it would be futile to track him down with all the side-streets and alleys in Dark City.

Riku gave another dismayed sigh before strolling up to the bridge leading into The Castle That Never Was — the seemingly-abandoned headquarters of Organization XIII.

It was official. Sora and Riku had now gone their separate ways upon arriving in The World That Never Was. Unknown to both of them, two figures were watching their every move from the rooftop of a nearby skyscraper. They were both wearing the black-hooded coats of the supposedly-destroyed Organization, but underneath their hoods, they looked totally different.

One of them had long, black hair tied in a ponytail. His right eye was covered by an eyepatch and he had a scar on his left cheek. His left eye was an eerie, yellow color and he was giving a sinister smile towards the rest of the city.

The other figure had long, blue hair that was spiked on the top and flowed gracefully down to a few inches below his shoulders. He had yellow-orange eyes, and a pair of scars between his eyes that seemed to form the shape of an "X". He was frowning in the direction of the castle.

Sora did not halt in his footsteps as he dashed down the street. He rounded a few corners, passed a few blinking neon signs, and a couple ground-floor windows with lights on. At the same time, he also took into account how the area was quiet… so quiet, he could hear his footsteps echoing into the distance. Having become acquainted to seeing Nightmares randomly popping up all around, the lack of enemies made him feel anxious.

Less than five minutes had passed since the brown-haired sixteen-year-old had split ways with Riku when he stepped into a vast, deserted plaza. His feet finally skidded to a stop when he recognized the location. His eyes swung around in wonder, spotting a tall skyscraper to the right of the road he had gone down.

The building had the same architectural design of the others — the high-rise style of New Orleans, Louisiana — except for a few noticeable differences. It had two sets of concrete steps leading from the sidewalk in opposite directions before turning around and meeting a landing before the structure's main entrance; the layout seemed to resemble a perfect baseball diamond. At the top of the skyscraper, Sora could see a set of gigantic television-like screens; each monitor had a different tint applied to its surface.

He stared in surprise, recalling how he had encountered a strange, young man in a black-hooded coat at this very spot. When the youth had revealed his two Keyblades, Sora had fought him in what had then seemed to be another dimension. The guy had said something about "defeating Riku" when Sora had questioned if he was the silver-haired teen. After Sora had defeated him, the young man had dropped his Keyblades (which disappeared), removed his hood, and told the former, "You make a good other… "

That five-word phrase hadn't made any connections in Sora's mind at the time. For that matter, it still didn't make any sense!

He shoved the thought aside when his eyes fell upon an overturned truck lying beside the building. He remembered Goofy pointing out the strangely-placed vehicle when Sora, Donald, and Goofy had first come to this world to save Kairi and stop the remaining members of Organization XIII. Other than a cracked windshield, blinking headlights, and some skid marks on the street, there was no indication of how the truck had ended up there. Apparently, some reckless Organization member had lost control and crashed it into that particular spot of all places… that theory made zero sense to Sora.

His thought process came to an unexpected end when a voice shouted in a mocking-like tone, "What's the matter, sleepyhead?"

Sora swept his eyes across the square in a hurry. Although he could see nothing out of the ordinary, it was clear he had heard someone else speak. "Who's there?!" he demanded, his eyebrows furrowing into a scowl. "Don't you dare hide from me! Show yourself! I mean it!"

The voice continued. "'We' had to jump through plenty of hoops and dodge many obstacles to get you here! And it looks like it's all gonna pay off."

Before Sora could tell where the voice was coming from, a familiar sound filled his ears. It was a little like a whirling noise combined with a laser being shot. His mind clicked in an instant; the sound was the same noise he'd heard when that one Organization member had shot several laser-resembling bullets onto the floor to remove the Heartless trapping Sora, Donald, and Goofy. What was his name? Sora never had found out.

He swung his head around and gasped. His Keyblade appeared in his hand just as a laser-bullet closed in. When the rapidly-approaching object was close enough, Sora swung his weapon and knocked the bullet straight at the side of the nearest neon sign. When the laser made impact, the sign's Japanese characters started flashing as a few showers of sparks flew out.

Sora shifted his focus to the top of the skyscraper directly behind him. He froze in alarm; his feelings had proven correct. Standing at the very rooftop was a tall man wearing the exact same black-hooded coat he had before. His long, black hair in the ponytail with a few greyish patches and yellow left eye didn't look familiar. Rather, it was the black eyepatch covering his right eye and somewhat-healed scar on his left cheek that indicated to Sora who the man was. In his hands were a pair of silver-and-purple colored aero-guns with the odd design Sora had taken note of the last time he had encountered the Nobody.

In a single leap, the man left the roof and plunged straight down the full length of the skyscraper before he landed feet-first on the street below. His weapons magically disappeared from his hands as he gave a sinister grin.

Sora was still astounded. "You're a part of this?! Who are you?!" he exclaimed as he lowered his Keyblade.

"Hey!" the man replied. "Let's hit these plot points in order, Sora… Roxas! First off, my name's Xigbar — that's 'S-ig-bar'! Remember it so I don't have to remind you again! Second, you're probably wondering about you're revised itinerary; 'why am I here, not back home?'"

When Sora nodded, Xigbar started to approach him. "The answer's so simple, a talking dog could figure it out. 'We' brought you to this place — hijacked your and Riku's little 'slumber party' before it even started. Ever since, 'we've' been both your guides and constant lookouts."

Sora looked confused. If what Xigbar claimed was true, all these people in the black coats had known this was going to take place well in advance. Yet, how was such a thing possible?

"'Before it even started'?" he repeated, thinking out loud. He gasped and his eyes lit up. The image of the strange man wearing the brown robe back on the islands reentered his mind; the one who had said, "This world has been connected." The young man with the spiked, silver hair and black coat who had first shown up in Traverse Town and apparently every world since — except for Camelot of course! Ansem, The Seeker of Darkness from the world of Pixie Hollow and Xemnas from both the clubroom in Rascal's Dreamland and CLU's Battleship in The Grid. The red-haired man who spoke in riddles and the mysterious scientist mumbling about some "experiment". Could there actually be a connection between them all?!

"Of course!" Sora exclaimed in realization. "The robed guy I met the day of the storm! The young man in black… Ansem… Xemnas… and those other two — the scientist and riddle-maker! They are all connected!"

Xigbar was now a few feet from the spikey, brown-headed youth. His grin became larger, causing Sora to realize his assumptions had been accurate.

"Bingo!" Xigbar informed him. "You didn't know it, but you had travelled back through time to just before your home fell to Darkness — only because another version of you already existed there. One moment, you and Riku were probably falling asleep so you could enter the Sleeping Worlds. The next, you were both on the island. That was only possible because you had moved backwards through the time-stream."

Sora was shocked. Up until now, he had always believed time-travel was impossible; a science-fiction concept that could never become a reality. Boy would he have something to say to his Science teacher, Mrs. Sei-Fly, once he returned home!

"As you said," Xigbar continued. "In the past, you already had met Mister Robe Guy! He only was there then to make sure you would end up here now."

Sora stared at the "former" Organization member in total shock. He shook his head, certain everything the man was saying was so absurd, it couldn't be possible; he was simply trying to trick Sora into believing something that wasn't true.

He glared at Xigbar. "That's ridiculous!"

Xigbar seemed unfazed as he strode past the irritated sixteen-year-old Keyblade wielder and continued to the unique skyscraper beyond. "It sure is," he added in a more sarcastic tone. "Who'd ever believe it? Such stuff isn't supposed to be possible, right? How could life be full of so many coincidences?"

He stopped just before the building, his back turned to Sora's scowling expression. "That's why you idiots never saw any of it coming," he added. "You and Riku were off thinking you were taking some 'test', right? As if! If you don't believe me, try doing what your scientist 'friend' said and ask yourself; 'why I am wearing the same clothes if I'm already awake and back home?' The answer is simple! You are not gonna wake up, okay?! That 'angel' said to Riku, 'there are no boundaries separating reality and illusion!' Likewise, there's no 'reality versus dreams' anymore!"

Xigbar gestured first at Sora, then himself, before he indicated the skyscraper and surrounding environment. "Look around! There's just you… us… and all this!"

Sora looked down at his faint shadow on the street. If everything the Nobody was saying was true — and he had the slightest feeling it was — there was nothing he could do about it… was there? He was now locked in an everlasting dream turned nightmare. He would probably never return home or see his friends and family again. It also meant Riku was most-likely in the same position.

Sora wanted to slap himself in the face. Why hadn't he listened to the silver-headed youth? Both Riku and Violet had told him more than once something strange was happening, but he had disregarded their beliefs as figments of the dreams. In the end, it had become quite clear those two — the seventeen-year-old and the Angel of Dreams — had been correct from the very beginning of the quest. Sora had fallen for some peculiarly-designed trap. Of course, he was still well aware of who had prepared it. He now had a reason to pick a fight and hopefully end this horrible plot twist before things got any worst. He would start with the man standing before his eyes.

"Fine, I see. Fair enough," Sora finally said as he gazed back up at Xigbar. He positioned his Keyblade into his typical battle pose and glared at his opponent. "So what?! At least I know who to blame for it!"

Xigbar glanced over his shoulder at the teenage Keyblader's glaring face. His sinister grin was now at its maximum size. "Oh!" he stated in a very sarcastic voice. "I see you've still got that… 'angry look' down. Did I kill your goldfish?"

Sora's eyes filled with concern. "No! Not Herman!" he yelled. His glare returned with such an intensity, it would've appeared flames were in his eyesight. "You'll pay!"

A small chuckle left Xigbar's mouth. "As if! You can put that thing away now! Your pet is okay."

Though Sora gave a deep sigh of relief, he retained his fighting stance and his glare was still locked onto Xigbar. The latter shook his head before turning back to face the skyscraper.

"Listen," he called back. "I've got a few 'errands' to run, so this is where I'm gonna tag out. Be a good boy, Roxas!"

Before Sora could charge forwards and deliver a single hit, the Nobody simply teleported away. Sora hastily whirled his eyes around the area for any sign of the man's presence. He heard a strange laugh from above and turned his eyes straight up. He froze, certain what he was seeing was supposed to be impossible.

There was Xigbar, hanging upside-down in mid-air — directly above the spikey-haired youth's head. His aero-guns were back in his clutches and he was shooting several laser-bullets at the street below. Sora immediately ducked until he realized all twelve of the lasers had missed him. Instead, they were now forming a perfect circle with him at the exact center.

Before Sora's puzzled and baffled eyes, the twelve laser-bullets transformed into eleven identical figures wearing hooded, black coats. The only one who wasn't was the individual standing in the direction of the multi-screened skyscraper. Sora's glare returned for a second when he recognized the young man in the black coat who had claimed the "Realm of Sleep" was really the "Realm of Dreams".

As Sora positioned his Keyblade to fight, the strange youth extended his right hand. With a hint of a friendly, determined smile, he said, "Come with me."

Before Sora could try to make sense of what was taking place, he suddenly had a memory come to mind.

As he ran to make distance between himself and the insect-looking monsters, Sora raced across the bridge leading to the smaller islet. He came to a dead halt in his tracks on the other side. There was Riku, his back turned to the approaching brown-haired fourteen-year-old.

"Where's Kairi?!" Sora exclaimed in a state of alarm and panic. "I thought she was with you!"

Riku sounded abnormally calm in comparison. It seemed he was almost in a trance and oblivious to what was happening all around. "The door… has opened."

"What?!" Sora yelled above the storm's howling wind.

"The door has opened, Sora," Riku replied, turning to face his friend. "Now we can go to the outside world."

"What are you talking about?!" Sora rushed, certain Riku hadn't returned to his senses. "We have to find Kairi!"

"Kairi's coming with us!" Riku stated. Sora stared at his friend in shock. "Once we step through, we may not be able to return. We may never see our parents again; there's no turning back. But this may be our only chance; we can't let fear stop us. I'm not afraid of the Darkness!"

With a friendly, yet determined smile, Riku reached his hand out to Sora. All Sora could say in reply was, "Riku… "

The flashback ended. As Sora was about to come back to his senses, a sudden wave of exhaustion struck him. His head began feeling heavy and his eyelids were no dissimilar. He started wobbling in place as everything around him seemed to be vibrating like in a comic book; he could even see the lines of movement as his vision started to blur. He suddenly fell forwards onto the street before his Keyblade vanished from his hands. His mind began clouding with what felt like blackness before his eyes started watering. Just before his eyelids shut, he saw a splattering of what appeared to be paint on a canvas. The dizziness was taking its toll.

"What's… happening?" he muttered.

Moments before he lost consciousness, Sora thought he could hear Xigbar talking to him in a very soft voice. "Nighty-night! Pleasant dreams, kiddo!"

When Sora reopened his eyes, his vision was still extremely blurry. As it quickly cleared, he realized he was staring straight up at a bright, blue sky with a few white, puffy clouds. The sun was shining with such intensity, he had to place his right hand over it until his eyesight had finished refocusing. He was amazed, recognizing the view as the exact, same one from his home back on the Destiny Islands.

Realizing he was lying on the beach, Sora sat up and brushed a few particles of sand out of his hair. As he took a second to take in his surroundings, his eyes landed on a tall young man with silver hair leading down to just below his shoulders and mildly-tanned skin. He was wearing a sleeveless, black vest that continued to just below his waistline, very dark-grey pants, black boots, and black "wrist-guards" (as Sora had come to know them).

The figure was standing at the edge of the seashore close to the spot where Kairi had stood when Sora had once asked if she could recall anything about her own hometown; of course, the answer had been "No". Sora shoved the unneeded contemplation aside. Since his back was turned at the brown-haired youth, Sora wasn't sure who the individual was. However, he seemed to resemble someone familiar….

As Sora continued to watch, a second figure approached the young man. To his complete surprise, Sora recognized the man in the brown-hooded robe from the island's cavern. He could also tell the robe strongly looked more like a monk, pastor… or whatever the "man of a church" was called than someone linked to Organization XIII and Xehanort.

Sora remained staring ahead as the robed figure neared the silver-haired young man. The latter shifted his gaze at the new arrival and they started speaking to each other. While he was trying to make out what they were saying, Sora heard an easily-identifiable voice to his left. He spun his attention in said direction and spotted the young man in the black-hooded coat sitting in the sand beside him. The man appeared to be smiling as he spoke.

"Yes, this is where it started," the man explained. "At this point, I still had no idea that I was talking to myself. He cast away his bodily form just to set me on the appointed path."

Sora was puzzled. Most of the mysterious youth's words did not register in his head as common speech, but as riddles. Since when could people possibly talk to themselves by means of two separate people? Then again, if Sora himself had met Roxas face-to-face, he would pretty much be having a conversation with himself, too. The same would true of Kairi and her own Nobody… whatever her name was. He couldn't quite recall. Perhaps, if he saw her he might remember her name — that is, her Nobody name.

"What do you mean?" Sora finally inquired.

The young man gestured at the man in the brown robe. "That is Xehanort reduced to just a heart," he informed Sora. "The being you and your friends called… 'Ansem'."

When Sora spun his focus back towards the shoreline, he nearly jumped back from being startled. Towering over him was the guy in the brown robe. According to the strange man in black, the robed figure was really Ansem, The Seeker of Darkness — the same person who had possessed Riku's body, Sora had defeated alongside Donald and Goofy in the "Endless Abyss", and had been eliminated himself while opening the "Door To Darkness" and getting struck by a brilliant beam of Light.

Before Sora could learn anything else, his vision started blurring and he found himself dozing off yet again.

When his eyesight refocused once more, Sora was standing on the beach in the same spot he had moments before. Only this time, he was facing the other way. He found himself staring directly at the smaller island's waterfall. It was then he also took note of how the entire area was dark; night had fallen. He started to sweep his eyes around the immediate area. They fell upon the path leading to the "secret" cavern Sora and Riku had discovered several years prior, thinking a monster was living inside.

He stared, unable to believe his own eyes. The robed man was strolling inside. All Sora could say was, "Him… "

A second later, young man with spikey, brown hair came running into view. Sora stared in shock, noticing the teenager was wearing the same yellow shoes he himself was currently. He let out an audible gasp, certain he had just seen himself. "Is that… "

"Yes," a voice called out. Sora whirled to his left. There stood the young man in black — the same one from the beach, the one who had extended his hand for the brown-haired Keyblader. "The point in time Xigbar mentioned and you remembered."

Sora was having an extremely difficult time accepting what was being said. "Me," he stammered in surprise. "Just before my world was lost to the Darkness… "

"Ansem first sent me on my way," the man stated. "And then placed himself here when the time was right. That was what set all these events in motion."

Sora was now beyond perplexed. "What are you saying? Ansem knew everything that would happen? Did he use a crystal ball to tell him the future?"

The man gave a hushed chuckle at Sora's third question. "No," he confessed with a shake of his head. "Not 'everything'. He's no different than your friend, Merlin."

Now that much Sora could comprehend very easily — especially after speaking with the wizard in Camelot's dreams. Even though Merlin had claimed to have the ability to see far into the future, he also admitted he didn't know everything. He had given the example with knowing Wart… Arthur was going to fall in through the roof and where. He just didn't know who to expect specifically. If the man in black's comparison turned out accurate, Ansem… Xehanort's Heartless had been aware about many of the upcoming events — including the night the island was to be attacked by the Heartless during a storm. The only question left was… how? How had Ansem known to be there at that moment?

"But remember," the man continued. "Ansem possessed Riku and saw his experiences in real time."

Sora was still unconvinced. "So?" he challenged. "That could only tell him so much. How did he know I would be in the cave the day of the storm?"

"Simple," the man replied. He pointed at the cave entrance.

An unexpected tremor shook the island, causing Sora to wonder if he could keep his balance. To his complete amazement, he didn't have any problems doing so. Sora turned his attention to the cave. Flying out from inside came a girl of about age fourteen. Thanks to her auburn-colored hair, Sora instantly recognized her.

"Kairi!" he shouted and reached out to grab her. The girl vanished a few inches before he could catch her. It was then the entire island faded into a blur as Sora's vision became a canvas of splattered… well, you get the idea (Sora made me say this!).****

When Sora reopened his eyes a few minutes later, he was staring at his feet. His vision came into focus over a period of time, causing him to gradually realize he was falling through mid-air. He took a speedy survey of the area and noticed at least two or three dozen other figures plunging through the air around him; they were all descending at the same rate he was.

Sora stared in alarm. Every single one of the other figures looked exactly like he had during his first quest with Donald and Goofy over a year and a half ago. Their red baggy shorts, white fighting gloves, giant yellow shoes, crown necklaces, and spiked brown hair were plenty of sufficient evidence to support his assumption. After all, how many other individuals did he know who had such an appearance? Well… Mickey Mouse had a similar design; red shorts, yellow shoes, and white gloves. Otherwise, there was no one else who fit the description besides Sora himself.

"What is… ?" Sora stammered, glancing around.

It was clear he had absolutely no clue as to what was happening. If it wasn't a dream, what else could it be? Furthermore, if it was a dream, it was spiraling well out of control.

Sora continued to fall. He looked down below and saw a sight he automatically recognized. Thanks to the oddly-shaped streetlamps, wooden buildings with stone foundations, wooden sidewalks, and red cobblestone plaza, the spikey-haired sixteen-year-old knew he was headed straight for the shopping district of Traverse Town.

He landed onto the square feet-first and took a couple seconds to glance over the rest of the area. He noticed the large, yellow sign for the "Accessory Shop" his friend, Cid had owned, the smaller building with a diagonal green doorway he knew was a replica of Geppetto's Workshop constructed by Leon and the others following the woodcarver and Pinocchio's escape from Monstro, the gigantic sign displaying a local café's menu hanging on the outer wall of a boarded-up apartment complex, and the small, red mailbox situated on the edge of the plaza.

Sora's mind paused in thought for several additional seconds. Last he had been to the town, he recalled not seeing any of those familiar landmarks. In fact, the entire town had possessed an entirely different appearance from before. Sora was unable to come up with a single possible explanation for such occurrences.

Sora's pondering came to a close in time to see all the other figures (who looked like he had two years prior) landing in the plaza. Some of them started walking around casually. Others began running all over the place. A few stood their ground before carelessly falling onto their backs upon the cobblestone. Three or four were sprinting in circles around the pair of streetlamps.

"This is getting too weird," Sora muttered under his breath. "How can there be so many of me?"

"You've been here many times," a voice explained. Sora spun around and found the same young man wearing the black-hooded coat standing to the left. "Your first journey… your voyage through memories… in the data-scape… in the 'Realm of Dreams'… in your own dreams. Relived again and again and again — just like déjà vu. History has repeated itself, and you along with it. It wouldn't be possible if everything hadn't been laid out like this so far in advance."

As Sora was starting to ponder over the man's explanation, he spotted a small mouse with easy-to-spot round ears running through the plaza with a Keyblade in hand. All the Sora-identical "copies" vanished one by one as the mouse ran through the square and headed for a large, wooden doorway leading into the next district. He suddenly disappeared before it.

Seconds later, a girl stepped into view along with a light-grey furred raccoon and small, green hummingbird. Sora stared in surprise, although he didn't know who the strange girl was; only that she wasn't Kairi, Aerith, or Yuffie. She was wearing a tan-colored dress with two shoulder straps and a red-orange feather in her dark-green hair. She was barefoot and her outfit seemed strikingly-similar in design to how Native American women were often depicted. Before Sora could examine her appearance more, the girl gazed to her left before rushing in the direction of Cid's shop and beyond.

"Who… was that?" Sora asked. He received no reply.

A moment later, a duck and tall dog wearing human-like clothing strode into the square from Sora's right. He stared in surprise; it was Donald Duck and Goofy. When a golden dog with long, black ears followed them, the spikey, brown-headed youth realized Pluto was with the two.

"Donald! Goofy!" Sora exclaimed in recognition.

Goofy stopped in his tracks and pointed straight up. Donald and Pluto did the exact same thing. Sora turned his focus straight into the sky above. A bright star suddenly flashed and faded out of existence. When he returned his gaze back down, Sora saw Donald and Goofy hurrying off towards Cid's shop and to the right. Pluto was sniffing his way to the left of the shop's entrance and headed down an alley.

Although he was shocked and mystified alike, Sora silently decided to follow Donald and Goofy. He started for the abandoned "Accessory Shop" and raced up a short flight of steps. After turning right, he made a sharp left before another left at Geppetto's "second" workshop. He made a right when he saw both Donald and Goofy strolling up to a large, wooden doorway. When they inexplicably vanished before it, Sora dashed over to find out why.

As he was reaching for the doorway, a clear, but muffled voice filled his ears. Sora froze in place when a second joined it.

"Sora! Do not proceed! It is too hazardous!"

"Sora! You've gotta wake up! Sora!"

All at once, Sora's head started spinning round and round. His vision blurred and the doorway became a tangled mess of an image. His eyelids felt heavy as he suddenly fell to the ground and saw nothing but complete darkness.

A/N: "...UNTIL AT LAST, [SORA] FELL FAST ASLEEP - AND BEGAN TO DREAM!"
YES, THAT WAS A REFERENCE TO DISNEY'S "THE MANY ADVENTURES OF WINNIE THE POOH (1977)"! I Just HAD To Include It!

Well, Chapter 42 is complete, and it is time for Chapter 43! I REALLY Hope You Enjoyed How I Had Sora's Story In THE WORLD THAT NEVER WAS Start!
I also included Xigbar's mentioning of a "Goldfish", which was originally in the Japanese-styled trailer. Since I knew of a few people who were DISAPPOINTED when that line wasn't the same in English, I decided to bring it back - IN A NEW LIGHT!

So, I am sure you noticed the pair of men in the black-hooded coats watching Sora and Riku! One of them, I'm certain you ALREADY know, is Xigbar.
Still, who is the OTHER man? IF You need a "Hint", try recalling each Organization XIII member from "KINGDOM HEARTS: CHAIN OF MEMORIES" And "KINGDOM HEARTS 2". He's in at least ONE of those Two!

Plus, I wanted to point out how I included a "REFERENCE" to a particular Disney Movie when Sora saw the girl in the plaza. Of course, I WILL say as much: THAT GIRL IS ANOTHER OF MY ORIGINAL CHARACTERS! I WILL NOT BE REVEALING WHAT HER NAME IS - AT LEAST NOT YET!

Lastly, PLEASE DON'T LEAVE WITHOUT REVIEWING! THE FATE OF THIS STORY DEPENDS ON IT!

REMEMBER - A MINIMUM OF 107 IS REQUIRED FOR THE SEQUEL! IF 120 ARE POSTED, I WILL INCLUDE A "SNEAK PEEK" FOR THE SEQUEL ITSELF! HOWEVER, THAT/THOSE GOAL(S) MUST BE MET BY THE TIME CHAPTER 49 IS POSTED! THAT WAY, I WILL HAVE TIME TO ANNOUNCE WHETHER OR NOT EITHER GOAL WAS MET!

This is SoraLego278 saying, "See Ya Later, Keybladers!"
Don't Forget To, "Have A ZIP-A-DEE-DOO-DAH DAY!"

**** YES! THIS IS AN INTENTIONAL FOURTH-WALL JOKE!