A/N: Thank you very much to my readers, and reviewers as well!
Rozen-senpai: Holy Moogles! You're alive?! I'm just kidding! laughs Anyway thank you very much Rozen, and sorry about the 'bold' text when labeling the flashbacks, I didn't want to abuse the italics to much. I've got ideas about the Compass of Chaos and Order, it was mentioned once in the old story, remember when Maleficent told her not to touch the compass? Don't worry it'll be mentioned soon.
Xejicka: We've got more chapters where that came from buddy… I'm glad you liked the fruit joke, I knew you'd laugh. Hey wait Xigbar called him a dud, when was that? Oh that Alex/Axel guy might make an appearance in the chapter, might being the keyword.
Ezra Diskence: Thank you very much Ezra. I'm glad my characters are Sue-safe I was worried! Anyway I'm trying very hard to fill the plot holes, as I know there's still many questions left unanswered, but that's what a sequel is for right?
And with that… On with the story!
Chapter 9: Proditor (Traitor)
Abedo wandered the halls of Castle Oblivion, he had to go and seek out these two people by the name of Light and Dark, but something was calling him down to the basement portion of the castle, and it was beginning to displease him quite a bit for now. He reached the source of it all, and looked through the vast white hallway coming across a figure dressed in black, he couldn't make out the figures face, but it mattered not to him.
"I take it…" the figure sounded so much like him, "you're Abedo."
Abedo placed one hand in back of him and the figure watched his motions with little regard. In Abedo's hand was a blade that he called from memory 'Soul Eater'. There were previous reincarnations of the blade, and this was probably, and hopefully going to be its last, but one can't look too far into the future.
The figure noted the strange way his hair was styled in, and smiled underneath his hood. 'So that's what I look like…' he thought. It was like looking in a mirror, who ever created the replica got everything down perfectly. 'Old man, you did a spectacular job!'
"You're the replica she spoke of then…" the figure said lowering his hood down, and noticed that Abedo's eyes widened. "What…?" he smirked.
"You're…" he growled for a moment and looked back at the little pendant hanging on the side of his belt.
"Let me guess quickly, you're here to protect Ames and Jackie, right?" the figure asked his replica quickly.
"Don't tell me you to?" the replica asked eyeing him cautiously.
"Yep… I'm the original." He said pointing a thumb to his chest. "And if you're like me, you've got no soul…"
"No!" the replica yelled brandishing his weapon. "Listen stop trying to tell me lies!"
"I'm stating the truth…" Rax sighed. This replica was going to be stubborn, it really did believe that it had a soul after all. He pulled out a strange looking weapon, one that Abedo, the replica, had never seen before. On his neck he slowly took off the broken pendant and placed it in front of the replica. "We've got the same pendant here. No doubt yours is a dud."
"Listen, I'm protecting Ames…" the replica was losing his patient, and he didn't give a rat's behind if he was a fake. Truth be told he finally had some happy memories, and he wasn't going to let this guy ruin his good time. "She doesn't even want to look at your face."
Rax placed a hand on his face, and just moaned in annoyance. He had his personality all right, and he didn't like it. 'I can't believe I'm arguing with myself…' He placed the necklace back where it belonged and moved forward. Rax noticed that the replica had a somewhat familiar suit placed on him. 'All he's missing is the helmet…' he thought and pointed his Keyblade towards the figure.
"Fine then…" Rax said. "If you want to protect the two of them that badly, then do it. It's your promise, right?"
Abedo ran forward and jumped into the air with a burst of speed. Rax jumped back and lifted his Keyblade into the air; he blocked the attack with one hand gripping the handle of the keychained weapon. The replica knew that Rax had experience with that type of weapon, but he wasn't going to let that stop him right now. Abedo was pushed back roughly and Rax jabbed the weapon forward, sending him falling to his knees. Rax wasn't going to waste anymore precious time with this game, he had much work to do.
"It's my promise…" Abedo strained to stand up. Rax had used a small jolt of electricity at the end of the attack, and the replica could feel his body respond differently. "It's mine… and mine alone!" the replica yelled out and dashed forward, making his opponent stumble.
Rax watched in slow motion as he stumbled back, started to stare up at the ceiling. 'Yours and yours alone…' he thought closing his eyes for a moment. 'Dark Dance…' he thought, and in a flash he back flipped and pulled out another weapon, one without a keychain attached to the weapon. Abedo prepared himself for whatever was going to come his way. The Keyblade twirled about, and the replica noticed that sparks were flying from the contact as it connected with the plain looking sword. Rax twirled about and moved in a flurry of slashes.
Abedo strained to try and maintain a good defense, but on the last strike of his Soul Eater connecting with the two opposing weapons he pulled back. He leaned against a pillar and growled for a moment. 'I should be able to keep up with him…' he thought bitterly and moved forward once more.
"Listen, keep fighting me and you're not going to get a chance to carry out your promise…" the original said, he didn't want to fight the replica, it was obvious. "Why… Just ask yourself, why are you fighting me? Are you afraid, is that it? Are you afraid that once I do reach Ames and Jackie that you'll have no--?"
"That's enough! The two of you just stop!"
Abedo and Rax looked off in the distance and noticed a very transparent figure walk down the hallway. The two of them flinched hearing the angry voice and back away slowly. The figure seemed a bit static, and Rax knew who it was right away, but no doubt so did the replica. The girl in a plain black gown walked through the white colored area, her light blue eyes and silver hair piercing through the vast color of nothingness, she didn't seem all that glad to see either one of them for right now.
Then, she opened her mouth:
"What in the hell are you two doing?!"
"…"
"Abedo…" she tried to maintain her composure, but her early outburst got the best of her. "You are supposed to take care of the intruders, not this dud!" she pointed a finger to the 'dud'. Rax rolled his eyes and looked away in annoyance.
"Sorry Ames…" he muttered throwing dirty looks in the direction of the one labeled in his head as 'original'. "I'm going right now…"
Rax and Ames watched as the replica disappeared from sight and without a doubt reappeared somewhere upstairs. She spoke once more:
"And you!" she said harshly. If she could she would've pulled him up roughly by the collar, or by the ear, which ever one seemed painful. "What are you doing?! I thought you were going upstairs, not down here! I'm not even supposed to be talking to you…!" she ran her fingers through her silver hair, she was stressed out again. "You… and… and Light and Dark are making my job as stressful as it is. You want me to have a break down?!"
"…" he couldn't help but try to hide a smile.
"Oh… I suppose you find this funny now?!" she was losing her kind nature. Ames tried to relax for a moment, and asked a simple question. "Are you jealous of that replica? Come on spit it out. I saw the way you--"
"Jealous? Please, of that thing?" he asked walking through her. "I'm not jealous about that walking doll."
"That's a bit harsh don't you think?" she turned and looked at him.
"… Oh yeah, I may have messed up Light's memory a bit…" he muttered looking away from her.
"You what?!" she screamed. "No, no, no! What were you thinking…? That's it, listen I'm not talking to you for a while…" she disappeared from view. Rax continued walking forward towards the lower part of the castle. "Wait!" someone called out, it was her again. "I'm sorry… Have fun! Now I'm leaving…"
"I'm never going to understand you…" he mumbled and continued his walk down towards the basement.
The Chilly Academic had front row seats towards the whole event, and at this point he was trying to formulate a plan. He was in the sanctuary of one of the computer rooms. He had noticed that their previous member was going towards where the other two were at, but he had a feeling his fellow members could take care of themselves just fine. 'I have to get the replica back though… Stupid emotions…' he thought to himself and sighed. His job was almost as hard as the little witch's.
"Ok… the replica's going to get rid of Light and Dark… and…" he chewed on the pencil he had in his hand and mumbled the plan to himself for a moment. "Then… I can get the REAL Rax and finish him off…" Shimasax said, his green eyes staring up at the ceiling. "That's prefect!" he cackled. "Nusvext had no idea he was being used! He's mind is so easy to read… Fruity man…" he chuckled.
In the white room
"I'm going to die of a heart attack!" the girl said as Shimasax finally left her room.
The girl in the plain black gown was exaggerating but doing this job was a lot of hard work. 'If the Superior had just given me that little compass I wouldn't be stressing out!' she was fuming now, and it showed as she paced back and forth. This was starting to wear her out, she didn't even care what happened to Light and Dark. She paused and reflected on her thoughts. True if it was up to her, she wouldn't have placed so much care towards those two, but Dark was someone she had to watch out for, because of who she was. Light, on the other hand was someone who would be less of a threat, if Rax took him in. 'Maybe I should separate the two? Wait no but that's not what Xauqa or the Superior said, but still…'
Ames paced about in her 'cage' and tried to think of a way to get out now. 'I don't want to turn into just a mere shadow,' she thought and sighed heavily. She paused and turned her gaze towards a bookshelf decorated in white. Several aged and torn journals stood there safe from the hands of others.
Ames opened her mouth slowly:
"If I'm ever getting out of here, I'm taking them with me," she was referring to the aged books and walk over slowly towards the bookshelf, "To help out Sora, and Amaterasu."
The witch in black, as Ames was sometimes referred to as, cracked open one of the aged journals, its spine was decorated with black and red designs. In the center of it was a roman numeral 8:
'I don't know how many days it's been since I counted my 'birth' but I know it seems like a long time. We've been sending Heartless and Nobodies this whole time while Sora's off doing his little 'hero' thing…
'There's someone by the name of--- actually… I forgot that person's name but I know for a fact that the Superior seems "happy" if you could even say that. I guess we should be "happy" too for this new person's arrival…'
-Codename: F.D.F
With Light and Dark
"What floor are we on now?" Dark asked.
Bruises and cuts covered their arms and legs, and their clothing seemed worn out with their own personal battle scars. Heartless and creatures by the name of Nobodies hunted the two relentlessly within the castle as they made their way up the floors towards where they hoped their answers were at. Light had told his companion that he lost count after the ninth floor.
"Let's just rest for a while, please?" Dark asked, and against Light's wishes, slumped against a white pillar and closed her eyes trying to relax for a while. Light growled in annoyance and looked back at Dark trying to figure something out.
"Don't you care about Ames?" he asked. "She could be in danger and--!" he stopped noticing Dark get up from the ground.
"Listen, weeks ago I knew nothing but her name, and I didn't mind. Now that I know who the heck she is, you're more worried about her than I'm supposed to be. I don't even know if we're suppose to save her, what if Nusvext was tricking us too?"
"But…" Dark cut him off again.
"You can go look for her if you want, but I want to rest, okay?" she asked crossing her arms over her head. "I'm tired, and hungry… Not to mention you are too, I know you are. Plus what about that guy, Rax? He should be helping Ames escape, not us… and why are you so interested in her? Ask yourself that…"
"I promised I'd be strong for her… She's my friend and she's in here somewhere, isn't that good enough?!" he yelled at her.
"It's not…" someone from the other opening said. Dark and Light looked away from one another and focused their gaze on the approaching figure. 'It looks like it looks like Terra from far away, but with a different clothing it looks like that Rax guy…' Dark made a mental note of that. "Listen you two, just go home…"
"That's what I'm telling him!" Dark said agreeing with the new figure. Light just gave her a confused look.
"Huh… You know you look like her…" the figure said dressed in black, with a Heartless insignia on his chest. "But you don't smell like her." He advanced forward. Dark growled for a moment knowing who he was referring to.
"You're here for her too?" Dark asked, and watched as the figure nodded. He had the same hair as Rax, and the piercing blue eyes. Still something about him, the way he carried himself, Dark couldn't help but feel some sadness for him. "You're not Rax, are you…?"
"Abedo…" he said and looked back at Light. "Huh, if I didn't know any better I'd say you'd be Rax's brother." Light blinked, trying hard to follow his words. "Doesn't matter I suppose… Anyway you're trespassing here."
"Trespassing?!" the other two yelled out. "You're insane, Nusvext told us to come here!" Dark said walking forward for a second. "That's right, we're here to get answers and help save Ames!" Light said pulling out his Keyblade.
Here within the passageway to the next 'world' that was fabricated from these weird-looking cards, neither Heartless nor Nobodies traversed through. Dark pulled out a similar weapon of nature and looked back at Abedo, as he summoned a blade by the name of 'Soul Eater'.
"Just like Rax…" Abedo said rubbing the back of his head with his free hand. "You're memories are probably fake…" the replica said slowly advancing forward. Dark and Light gripped the handles tightly on their weapons and looked at Abedo cautiously.
Within the safety of the white pillars a figure was watching from the shadows. It was none other than Shimasax who watched the fight that began. Dark jumped back as Abedo threw a black fireball in her direction. Light moved in and swung his Keyblade with force, to push the flaming attack away from his friend. Abedo stepped to the side and the flame struck the wall behind him. The girl growled for a moment and ran forward, her blade dragging at the bottom; sparks were flying from the contact of the tiles. 'She's going to place a Firaga spell on it…' Light thought running behind her.
Abedo brought his weapon up as soon as Dark let the flames engulf the blade. She brought it down with heavy force, as sparks and flames shot out from the contact. Light jumped from behind Dark's attack, and brought his weapon down. Abedo pulled back, and spun around slightly, bring his blade into the air to block Light's above ground attack. Light was pushed back and Dark picked up where he left off. Abedo watched as the black Keyblade was thrown into his direction, but Dark was no where to be seen. He blocked the Keyblade with ease, and soon Light followed from behind.
Dark's Keyblade disappeared as Light kneed the replica in the stomach. She appeared from behind the replica of Rax, and tackled him down with enough force. She felt her body surge with darkness, and before long she changed her form, her skin as black as night, and her eyes were the same shade of yellow as the Heartless. 'Don't kill him Dark!' Light thought, watching the replica pinned to the ground. If it weren't for 'Soul Eater' Abedo wouldn't have stood a chance against Dark when she was like that. She noticed something that hung by his belt. 'That pendant…' she thought, and something rushed back to her quickly.
Within the area you could hear voices yelling across in the dimension of where she was walking. She couldn't understand why the voice entered her mind, but for some reason she felt her heart sink for an unexplainable reason. '( )…' she thought stopping within the pathway of darkness stretched before her very eyes.
( ), get him out of there!
'Whose voice is that?' she asked herself hearing more yells and cries entering her ears, and troubling her mind now. 'What's going on?' the figure felt her heart cry out in pain, everything in her mind went berserk. '( ) what's wrong!?' her mind screamed, and her breathing quickened.
Help me…
'Something's wrong with you…' she thought in the back of her mind, she recognized his voice, and it broke her fragile crystal like heart, to hear him call out so weakly. 'Tell me what's wrong,' she asked the voice, she asked the voice within the boy's heart, but she got nothing, she could no longer connect with him. 'He's gone…'
"( )…?" she asked the dark abyss around her. "( )?" she asked again feeling alone now. "( )?!" she suddenly cried out loudly, the halls echoed his name through the space and time the darkness held within its frame. Something broke off in her heart, and a chain wrapped around her neck fell to the floor. She looked down and noticed the necklace he had given her. 'No…' her heart began to panic. 'I told you about your emotions…' the inner voice said letting its voice be heard. 'Now he has awakened, and you've lost your…' the pathway in back of her started to break off, and the figure started to run towards the light at the end of the road.
Dark felt her eyes widen at the sudden memory. Abedo kicked her off and she rolled backwards hitting her head on the pillar off to the side. Light looked back at her, but she shook her head signaling him to continue. Abedo parried against Light, with ease, but it was because both teens were tried from their fights in the previous levels below. Light took the chance once Abedo blocked his attack to punch him in the ribs, and to some degree it worked. The replica pulled back and panted for a moment, fearing that the wind was going to be knocked out of him. Abedo used another magical attack and aimed it straight at Light's heart. Dark rushed forward as she discarded her Heartless like form, pulling out her black colored Keyblade. The attack took seconds to conjure up, but that was all she needed. Within moments Light had already braced himself for the attack, and Abedo failed to notice the girl running towards him. Light watched as the magic spell was to its maximum, but out of nowhere a black Keyblade distorted the path of trajectory.
Dark panted for a moment, and outstretched her hand summoning her Keyblade once more, it had gotten stuck on one of the white pillars. The magical attack had exploded on impact with the aerial Keyblade. Abedo was pushed back from the gust of the attack, and Light ran forward, through the dust that had kicked up as a result. The Keyblade connected with the replica's shoulder, and he winced in pain. Dark watched as the replica was soon on its knee calling out truce, and Light was about ready to deliver the final blow, but something in his heart stopped him.
"I don't get it…" Light said, his Keyblade hovering dangerously close to the replica's head. The replica stared up at him, ignoring the Keyblade. "We're trying to do the same thing, but… Why are we fighting, we should be helping each other…"
"It's my promise… Mine and mine alone, I don't need you're help to do it…" Abedo said disappearing in a black mist.
Dark sighed and heard a noise from one of the pillars. She walked around lazily and soon came face to face with a man, he had long blonde hair and green eyes. She titled her head and looked back at Light telling him to get over here as soon as possible. The man referred himself to the Chilly Academic. The two told him they didn't want his Codename, but his 'real' name.
Shimasax sighed and finally said it:
"Shimasax…" the figure in black said stepping away from the sanctuary of the pillars. "You've come looking for answers no doubt…"
"That's why we're here…" Dark said quickly before Light could get a word in edgewise.
"So that's what they lured you with…" Shimasax said softly and snickered. Light and Dark looked back at one another and then felt their eyes widen. "You guys are going to turn into Heartless puppets…" the two teens growled in frustration. "I take it the two of you don't know…" the Chilly Academic said with a smile etched across his face. "I'll have to tell you guys then…" Dark watched as a card materialized out of thin air. "Let's go…"
The computer room
There was a loud thump as a palm come into contact with the screen. Nusvext looked really ticked off, and sadly Xejicka was the one to bear witness as the blonde yelled at the screen:
"What the…?! Has he gone insane?!" the blonde yelled out angrily. "How did he create that memory card?!" he thought about if for a moment. "It was probably Ames… she made that card for him. I knew she couldn't be trusted!"
"We don't know that for sure…" Xejicka said trying to stick up for the girl in the plain black gown.
Nusvext stared back at the screen and watched as Shimasax led the two teens towards another doorway. Xejicka watched with some interest and sighed for a moment. She had sensed another person within the castle moments after Light and Dark had entered. 'You really came back…' she thought looking down at the ground.
"Now he's done something really stupid…" Nusvext mumbled watching as Shimasax gave Light a card, and disappeared from sight. He looked back at Xejicka and noticed that she was preoccupied with something else. "Can you stop daydreaming about Xehart and focus?!"
"…" she blinked for a moment and stared up at the blonde teen with blue eyes, who had a distinct hair style.
"If they figure out about the other side we can kiss this whole little show goodbye!" Nusvext said staring back at the screen. Xejicka thought he was trying to set it on fire or something, but he was jut really ticked off.
"If these two can pass on through, without suspecting a thing, we could…" she paused for a moment. "We should be able to patch things up, with Ames' help… But if not well…"
Xejicka stopped her little explanation and looked around. Nusvext looked around with her and the scent of flowers came strolling by. Nusvext noticed several flower petals fall from thin air, and Xejicka amused herself by setting them on fire, but still the sweet scent of flowers remained.
Then, the two of them heard a voice:
"Well I guess being an old geezer was a cover up, he did a pretty bold move…" it was a feminine voice.
"Don't flatter him…" Nusvext said. 'These petals are so annoying!' he thought and looked at the empty space. "He's just being stupid…" Xejicka on the other hand titled her head, 'You call that flattery?' she asked herself.
The two of them watched as Xauqa reappeared from where the fallen petals remained, a teen around Nusvext's age with blue eyes and short light blue hair. Petal still appeared slightly, but Xejicka turned them into little embers, and watched as they fell to the ground. Number 11 frowned at the display and glared at Xejicka.
The Graceful Assassin spoke once more:
"There's no sense in standing here, something must be done…" Xauqa looked back at number 12 and 8. "All right, Xejicka, you're going." She said and no later did a single blue rose appear in her hand.
"Wha…?" Xejicka asked, holding a blue rose in her hand. She watched as her fingers grew warmer until the flower caught on fire. "But why me?"
"We can't let him ruin our plans…" Xauqa said trying not to twitch as she watched flower burn brightly. "So… eliminate him. There's no sense in having a traitor within an organization."
"Sweet!" Xejicka said and placed both of her hands in front of her. Flames engulfed her hands, and within moments two circular weapons, her trademark chakrams, appeared. "That's an order I'm not taking back, all right?" with that she disappeared in a burst of flames, and grinned. 'You're going to get it to… I know you are Xauqa…' the chakram wielder thought.
Land of Harmony
"Wow…" Dark said breathlessly. This place was none like she had ever seen. Grassy hills, and wildflowers as far as the eye could see, with a lake in the far off distance, mountains covered in snow. Butterflies of the color blue and black fluttered about. This place seemed prefect. "Wait, but aren't these cards something that's within our memories?" she turned back and looked at Light.
"I don't remember this place…" he whispered to himself and looked around. He spotted a lake in the distance, everything seemed really calm here. It was strange, but this place did strike a chord in his heart, and no doubt Dark was feeling the same emotion. "But there's something nostalgic about this place." He said walking forward, there was no sign of Shimasax.
Dark ran about enjoying the silence and in the distance there were faint caws from crows. She looked up in the evergreen trees and noticed the black feathered birds were staring at her. She nervously moved away and went back to Light's side. He looked at her with a confused facial expression, and she pointed up to the evergreen trees. He opened his mouth and looked at her with an expression that said 'you've got to be kidding me?'
"There aren't any Heartless or Nobodies here…" Light said looking back at her, and she nodded. The two of them were getting closer to the clear water lake. The sky above them signaled to them that it was late in the afternoon, dusk was clearly written across the skies. "What gives…?" he asked.
"Hey about earlier…" she said softly. "I'm sorry…" Light looked down at the grass as she began to apologize. "I've had a lot of things on my mind… and I remembered something…" she looked up at the dusky sky. "This guy with silver hair, but that's all I know for now, anyway," Dark cleared her throat, "This place does seem a bit familiar…" Dark said feeling something within her heart.
"Of course it should…" a voice said near them. "This place is from your memories…"
The two of them looked around but they didn't see anyone. Dark looked in back of her, and Light looked forward, there wasn't a body to supply the voice.
Again the voice spoke:
"In a way I suppose it serves the two of you right for being slaves to your memory." Shimasax said loud and clear. Within moments the area around them became a bit more frigid, and Light could see his own breath. Where Shimasax appeared, frost began to weigh the blades of grass down, and the Chilly Academic stepped forward. "This place, was created from the memory your soul has engraved into your very being…"
"We don't know this place!" Light growled, pulling out his Keyblade. "We've never…"
"If you two continue to believe those memories… and not your own heart…" Shimasax placed his body into a defensive stance, and at that moment a shield coated in blue appeared to form over his hand, "you might as well throw your hearts away." he noticed that the two teens summoned their Keyblades. "You keep going after the girl, and you'll turn into Heartless. You'll all sense of identity, and become her pawn!" he yelled at the two of them.
"We're nobody's pawns!" the two of them yelled back furiously. In the distances crows fled the sanctuary of the evergreen trees, and all three of them looked up at the black birds soaring high in the sky.
"Pretty pathetic…" Shimasax said. In a burst of speed, Dark was pushed back by a gust of freezing wind. She winced and staggered forward, bringing her Keyblade in front of her. Light moved forward once more, and jumped into the air, bringing his Keyblade over the back of his head, ready to deliver a devastating blow. Shimasax read his mind, and in the last spilt second brought his shield to the defensive stance, and pushed him back as the strange looking blade connected with the blue shield.
He tried to speak again:
"Still I really don't see why the two of you are putting so much of your soul into finding Ames when--" the Chilly Academic brought his shield up once more, blocking a fireball. "You guys as too far gone…"
Light panted for a moment, his weapon was pointed directly at number 4. Smoke emitted from the tip of the Keyblade, and Dark moved forward, raising her black coated Keyblade and Shimasax brought his shield up once more, and with his left hand he shot a Blizzaga spell. It connected with Dark's left hand. Light couldn't more anymore, the two of them were tired beyond the normality of the human stamina. Past fights were putting strains on their bodies. The Chilly Academic sighed a moment, looking relieved by their action, and he withdrew his weapon.
"Now, the reason why this place is familiar to you is--!" a chakram appeared in the center of Shimasax's chest. The substance that caught the attention of the two teens was a deep crimson liquid that dripped down slowly from the tips of the chakram.
"Sorry to cut in you two," a familiar voice said. Shimasax's body slowly started to slump forward, and Dark watched the chakram, her eyes still fixed on the red substance that dripped.
"Xejicka?!" one voice was loud, and the other was reduced to a shaken, quivering voice.
"It's Xauqa's order…" Xejicka said pulling the weapon out, and slashing at the body once more in a swift motion. "See ya later, Shimasax." Dark felt the Blizzaga spell melt, and she moved back closers towards Light. Both of their weapons feel on the ground with a loud metallic clatter. The Chilly Academic's weapon fell to the floor, the sharp edge of the weapon stabbing into the ground.
"You k-..killed him…" Light couldn't process that thoroughly into his mind. "But… but he's one of you!" Xejicka closed her eyes for a moment, trying hard to imagine that both of her chakrams weren't covered in blood.
"What are you people?!" Dark cried out, curling her fist. "Why did you--?!"
"…killed him…" Xejicka repeated to herself softly. Dark looked down at the deceased figure, but luckily Xejicka's body cover the waist up, she didn't want to see the face of a dead man. In moments the body seemed to disappear into the earth, in the form of snow. "It's true, I killed him, but… things without souls aren't necessarily alive in the first place. We're soulless." Soon the blood that covered her chakrams was gone. "With that…" flames replaced her chakrams and then the flames died down. "Here… Hero and Messenger…" she said softly giving the card to Light.
Light and Dark looked in back of them, the Flurry of Dancing Flames was fast on her feet. She looked back at them with her hazel eyes, and grinned for a moment:
"You guys want to figure that out for yourselves, right? Remember you lose something for something you gain in this weird place."
With Sora and Amaterasu
"Hey remember that DJ from the festival from Traverse Town?" Sora asked. Amaterasu looked at him trying to figure out what he was trying to say. "Seeing him… Axel, just like a regular human, it gave me hope. Nobodies aren't doomed to fade into the darkness at all…"
"As touching as that little line was… You guys, hello, I've been trying to talk to you for five minutes now!"
"Roxas?" the two of them called out. The two companions looked around the vast area, their eyes scanning for the Nobody of Sora. After seconds of searching they found nothing, and sighed in annoyance.
"Hey you guys!" Roxas placed his arm around his familiar and the brown skinned girl. "It's been a while, no?" he laughed and messed up their hair for a moment. The two of them were confused, but happy, but still mostly confused. "The elementals separated us for a while." The blonde hared Nobody said scratching the side of his cheek. "Are you guys… still confused?" he asked. Roxas sighed and jumped over the two, landing in front of them this time. "Do the words, 'I've been counting since the days of my birth' mean anything to you?"
"No…" both Sora and Amaterasu said in unison. Roxas sat down next to them and over looked the vast area around them. He commented on the great job the two of them did on creating their land, and they seemed a bit overjoyed by that fact. At least for now they had someone else to talk about.
Amaterasu spoke:
"It sounds like when a kid counts down to their birthday…"
"Yeah, that's what I thought too…" Roxas said sighing for a moment. "It's referring back to when we were created as Nobodies. Our 'birth' so to speak… When you're in the womb you're asleep for most of the time, but you're aware of what's around you. Sort of like the birth of a Nobody…"
"Are Nobodies already within a person before they turn into a Heartless?" Sora asked, looking back at his other half.
"I guess so…" Roxas said sitting Indian style, and he looked back at Amaterasu for a moment. "Yours died, didn't it?" she nodded, and he expressed words of apology on his behalf. "All I know is that I woke up from some deep sleep…"
"Is that what the elementals told you?" Amaterasu asked. Roxas nodded and looked up at the dusky written sky.
Roxas began to speak once more, his blue eyes staring up at the faint light of a star:
"They say you have the right idea of learning from the past…" he said and smiled for a moment. "But it's not going to be easy." The other two knew that so far. "People are going to try and trick you to go to their sides, because they want Kingdom Hearts as well as the power of the Keyblade… and bring the universe into a 'Dark Age' so to speak."
"Dark Age…" Amaterasu knew those words sounded familiar. "That's right, when they wanted me and Yomigami to teach you…" she said looking back at Sora. "You think that's what Ignis wanted, to have darkness rule over the whole universe?"
"Yeah…" Sora said, shuddering at the fact.
"Why do you hate it though?" Roxas and Amaterasu asked him.
"It's not that I hate it, it's just scary… Because it messes up our worlds." The Keyblade master said softly.
"Anyway, that voice thingy is asking for the two of you, it's time to leave soon." Roxas said standing up. He stretched out his hands to the two of them and once they were pulled up, and a strange blue light engulfed Sora, and a black eerie looking light engulfed Amaterasu.
"Hey, you think when we're old and gray we're still going to remember this?" Sora asked.
"WE?" she asked laughing. "I don't age… but I suppose you'll still remember this when you're old and gray." Amaterasu said laughing.
The aura of light cease, and the two teens looked around. Blue eyes scanned one area, and dark brown eyes scanned another. The two of them looked slightly confused and noticed someone on top of a stained glass platform; the figure had silver hair, and a slightly battered body. The area looked all too familiar and so did the tall door in front of them.
"But this is…" Sora looked back at his companion.
With Rax, the enigmatic figure
Rax sighed for a moment, and finally finished off the last Heartless, and another Nobody popped up to replace it. He growled for a moment and stabbed the Nobody with brute force, and that was the last of them. 'Stupid castle…' he thought and exited the world. He walked through the white hallway and found that he was getting tired himself, and decided to relax for a bit. He slumped against a white pillar and looked up at the white ceiling.
"Let's show them the only way/Let's show them our hearts…" he chuckled repeating the lyrics that Ames had once sung.
"Shimasax is gone, Mr. Enigma!" Ames voice rang out in his ears.
"That leaves two of the Underground members…" he grinned and stood up. "There goes today/it slowly fades… slowly fades away…"
"I thought you said you didn't like 'Shiny Toy Guns'?" he could picture her puzzled face.
"I never said I didn't like them either…" with that he started walk through the white hallway along another world, mirroring the journey of the two companions upstairs. "Why don't you try talking to them Ames. They could use some comfort…"
"They have each for emotional support… You Terra… you've got no one…" the girl in the plain black gown finally said his name.
"I still have you, Jackie… and Heart…" he said pulling his hood down as he walked and stopped at the next doorway. He pushed the doors open and moved through to the next area, this one looked all too familiar. "Home…" he said staring at the illusion before him. He had longed for that word, and for right now he got to see his home, just the way his original self remembered. 'I may not be fully alive… but, my heart's glad…'
"This is the end of the line for you, Rax…" he looked back and noticed someone with silver hair and turquoise eyes.
"Ruxsud…" Rax said pulling out his Keyblade. "The Silent Hero…"
The White room
"Nice work, Xejicka." Xauqa said as the Flurry of dancing Flames arrived on scene. Xejicka noticed that flower petals were still falling around the Graceful Assassin. "We really weren't sure if had what it took to take out a fellow organization member." Xejicka placed a chakram in back of her and wished to set those petals on fire again. "Well, I guess you did have it in you."
"You're in the big leagues now, girl…" Nusvext said smiling slightly.
"I am…?" Xejicka asked, dismissing her weapons back.
"Stop acting stupid…" Nusvext said, and Xejicka felt some tap her forehead. She growled and looked back at the Savage Fighter.
"See, with the three of use," Xauqa began to speak, "it's going to be a piece of cake, to take over the organization." In the distance Ames was listening to the conversation, while trying to maintain a mental link with Rax. "…Then it's goodbye to this cramped castle…" she said crushing the flower in her hand.
Ames jumped up in her chair, feeling a gloved hand rest on her left shoulder. The girl in the plain black gown mentally cursed number 11 for disrupting her conversation. She looked up at the teen with blue hair and blue eyes, and titled her head slightly.
"You want a bigger room don't you?" she asked Ames. Ames looked down and pondered about it for a moment.
The girl in the plain black gown placed her hands on her lap, and clutched the fabric of her clothing. She closed her eyes and shook her head thinking about the words more. 'Raxter…' she thought opening her eyes slowly, 'we're not really your true friends, you know that,' she looked up at Nusvext and Xauqa, 'you said that yourself when the three of you arrived together.' She looked away and sighed, 'but as we got to know you better, you made the three of us very happy.'
"What about the rest of them?" Nusvext asked. He looked at Xauqa with his blue mischievous eyes.
"Just leave them be," Xauqa said softly, watching Nusvext through the corner of her eye. "They can't do anything now," she was beginning to disappear in the form of flower petals. Nusvext turned around, as she completely departed from sight, and looked back at Xejicka and Ames.
"Hey, Ames," he noticed that she looked up. "You should be happy now, you know. Your Hero and Messenger are coming. Superior was right all along, wouldn't you agree?" the Savage Fighter slowly started to vanish, leaving behind some electrical sparks in his vanishing act.
Xejicka looked at Ames for a moment, trying to think of what to say. 'He was wrong about Rax though,' the two females thought for a moment. 'Maybe the events of the future will now be altered, because of him and Sora,' Ames thought, 'but even now I'm falling into the Superior's trap.'
She sighed and whispered this mostly to herself:
"Hey… Terra…" she began softly. "you're probably fighting right now, so I doubt you can hear me, but I want you to know that we still care about you, and…" she paused for a moment looking around the room. Xejicka was nowhere to be seen for now, "I know now that you aren't alone, so I'm sorry for saying that."
"That's pretty touching…" Xejicka said in back of Ames. "Kind of hard to believe a kid like you would say that believing that everything is going to be all right, considering you screwed up our plans, by giving that card to Shimasax…" the chakram wielder smiled. "And yet…"
"Oh give it a rest, you wanted to get rid of them too." She said trying to regain her composure. "And your job is to take out traitors, that was Xauqa's order, right?"
"You want me to get rid of you?" she asked.
"No…" she said flatly. "Rax would kill you if you did that. But I mean we do have other traitors in here."
"Rax is considered one though…"
"That's true… but he's pretending to be a member from here, remember? The other two have lost their hearts in here…"
"… I don't think it's wise to talk about it in this place though." The pyromaniac-chakram-wielder said poking the side of Ames' head. "Walls have ears and eyes in this place, got it memorized?"
"You just focus on letting past events come together again within the castle… We've got to get Sora to dispose of Marluxia," Ames covered her mouth and gasped.
"I knew it!" Xejicka said laughing. "Stop reading those journals… They're going to mess with your mind."
"Axel…" she snickered.
"Hey! It's J--!" Xejicka scrunched up her face. "Nice try traitor…"
A/N: You know what to do one review please!