A/N: Okay so here goes with the first chapter. I know it's not really expected but it's all in the plot. Hope you enjoy.


Disclaimer: I do not own these characters, I only manipulate them.

It all started about a month before, just before sunrise. She walked into Twilight Town and took a deep breath; everything still looked exactly the same despite the changes that had taken place in the three years she had been away from home. She heaved a sigh and walked towards the house she knew belonged to the person she had come to see. The chill autumn wind blew as it threatened to rain, how appropriate for his dying day, rain. She smirked as she walked towards to the door to the apartment complex.

Two flights of stairs later she reached his door and knocked hard enough to make the brass '8' on the door swing from side to side. She clutched a key in her hand before sliding it into her pocket and knocking again.

"Axel!" She yelled loudly, "Answer your door!" A loud, annoyed sounding groan was the only reply before the lock clicked and the door opened. "It's about time Axe- Roxas?" She said as a very, disheveled looking Roxas answered the door.

"He's still in bed…who are you exactly?" He asked, yawning, "Do you have any idea what time of day it is?!" He asked, now sounding upset. He reached for the hood that concealed her face but was only met by a hand stopping him and harshly throwing him back. He toppled to the ground, head slamming into the table, and was rendered unconscious as the girl stepped over him.

She walked down the hall, looking in each room until she found Axel's bedroom. A smirk crossed her features and she crossed the room soundlessly. Small hands wrapped firmly around one ankle and Axel found himself lying on the floor.

"What the hell?!" He yelled, startled and angry, "Who the hell are you and why are you in my room?!" He added jumping to his feet as his ankle was released.

"Now, now Axel…you have something that belongs to a friend of mine…and if he doesn't get it back he won't be happy…so hand over the key…I already know you have it." She said, her voice familiar to him, though he could figure how so. Before he could think he was on the ground, small hands around his throat as he gasped for air and then finally passed out.

As Axel slowly started to come to his senses, he dully noted that he had been tied up and blindfolded, and that he was quite obviously somewhere other than his room. It was cold and the air smelled musty and damp, like a basement or a prison cell. The eerie silence, save for the sound of a steady metallic clinking noise somewhere distant unnerved Axel and scared him. At first he had thought maybe it was some type of game Roxas had come up with, but something told him this was no game.

A laugh snapped Axel out of his trance and he pulled at the ropes binding him down as his stomach churned, making him feel sick. He strained against the bonds again but only made them get tighter, cutting into his wrists a little. He winced and started shaking when he heard footsteps coming near him.

"Wh-who's there?!" Axel stuttered, his voice betraying the fear he'd been trying to hide. He swallowed hard, "Where are you?!" He said; any semblance of courage now gone from his quavering tone. He jumped as there was another laugh, this time closer, making his blood turn to ice.

"Axel…I thought you weren't afraid of anything…death, danger, nothing fazes you…" as the girl spoke, Axel shuddered visibly, "Or is that only when you have a crowd?" She asked, voice growing darker. A sharp scream filled the silent room as Axel felt something sharp puncture his arm quickly before being withdrawn again.

"Why…why are you doing this?! What have I done to you to deserve this?" He asked pain evident in his voice even as it shook from fear.

"Me? You've done nothing…it's my boss who holds a grudge on you Axel…you have something that belongs to him. The key Axel….hand over that key or else…" Axel screamed loudly as she rubbed salt into the bleeding wound, making it burn painfully and open more.

"T-the key is…it's in the box…the box I sent with the others." He said, "I don't have it anymore..." He said shaking as he felt something sharp and painful drag down his stomach and prepare to pierce, making him shudder and try to move. The ropes on his arms tightened and he screamed.

"No lying Axel…you do still have it…lying is against the rules of this little game…and those who break the rules," She said, slowly cutting into the skin of his chest and stomach, "Get broken themselves."

Another scream tore from Axel's lips as he felt tears soaking into the black cloth over his eyes. "I can't tell you…I made her a promise before she left." He said as he felt flesh peeling from muscle and he screamed again. "A-and I…never break a promise." He said, as he felt white hot pain and smelled burning skin and muscle "N-E-V-E-R Got it memorized?" He managed to say.

"Shut up you…that girl is long gone…tell me where that damned key is or I skin you alive." The girl said, seeming shaken.

"It's hidden…in my room." He said as he felt the skin peel back farther and begin to rip from his back, bleeding profusely. The pain faded as he finally lost consciousness from the amount of blood he had lost.

"That's more like it…" She said, smirking as Axel went limp. "Now I'm going to see if you're telling the truth…"

'And if he lied to me…he'll be dead by nightfall.' She thought to herself as she walked away.

Axel stirred again after she had left but didn't struggle to escape, too weakened to even lift his head. He shiver as he heard the rain very faintly hitting a roof that had to be several floors above.

'I-I'm going to die here...tied up somewhere I haven't the slightest where is…alone…and I never got to say goodbye to…' His thoughts halted, and he gasped. She was going back to search for the key, and Roxas was there, alone.

A/N: Well there you have it. A nice violent first chapter, but so many things left up in the air. Will Axel survive? And what about Roxas? What's going to happen if there is no key? Will he be the one who meets the mystery girl's wrath? And who is that girl? All will be answered with time.