(Pointless)A/N: - Life's been hectic recently, and I appreciate you sticking with me.
It'd be nice if you left your thoughts! Like certain awesome people. b^^b You guys know who you are, and you rock this story to pieces.

Well then. Here we go.

Disclaimer: Disclaimed.

After a very joyed reunion between old friends (Axel, different to Sora, didn't cry) that involved hugging, grins, and a very miffed blond, Axel informed the brunette that he had to tell the person who was the designated leader, Zackary, immediately. He was the leader of this vast, incredible place Axel called 'Hollow Bastion,' and Riku could be killed yet again if Zack didn't approve.

While the two were conversing, the silverette sat in awkwardness. Roxas refused to make eye contact with him.

Axel lowly noted to Sora that once they were done having their fun, he would be happy once more. He was, as Axel said, "always angry when he's horny."

So the two parted from the couple, not missing the rising moans return.

The walk (or ride, for Riku's case) was relatively quiet, with Sora babbling away every so often about non-relevant matters that popped into his head.

Dispite this, it was nice. Riku hadn't had a moment of mindless thought ever since he had woken up. He was either too malnourished to think, having his brain prodded and his body examined, or he was sleeping.

It felt blissful, in a way, to let loose any ridiculous thoughts, to relax and...think-

All good things must end, and this was ended by Sora's announcement of, 'weee're heeerre!!'

Holding back a childish groan of distaste, the silverette smiled (faker than a barbie) for Sora, and straightened in his chair.

Another of the incredible futuristic panel-like door was ahead of them, flashing blue and allowing them to enter.

When the aquamarine eyes casted about the room.

If he thought the entrance was good, this was amazing.

With a steep-slanted ceiling and a step-up 2-foot balcony towards it, the entire north wall of the room was plastered with what appeared to be windows. A light blue, they were tinted to a point where one couldn't see out of it.

A little pointless, in Riku's opinion. (But what did he know, anyway? He had been dead for the past 10 years.)

A few feet away from the ledge of the balcony, there was a steering wheel. It looked almost dead-on the stereo-typical pirate wheel (aside from the chrome cover, that is.)

Resisting the urge to talk with an 'arg' or look for Polly, he turned his attention to the back of the room, where figures clustered together.

Standing in the white light of not one, but several computer monitors, the figures were murmuring things like, 'Van' 'coordinates' and 'sector G and I', while shifting amongst themselves, wrapped up into a little world of their own.

Clearing his throat, the brunette stiffened and called,

"Excuse me, Zack?"

A hand raised, its owner with his back facing them, not bothering to look up. Feathered charcoal spikes were noticeable from that mane of his, and he had to be at least a foot taller than Sora.

Then again...it's Sora.

"Sir! There's...err...a new gu-person I would like your approval of. He's a stranger of sorts to-"

He blinked.

Within seconds, the familiar tip of an enormous blade was centered between his eyes, leaving him with a froggy look.

Sora had been pushed (or thrown, but it was too fast for Riku to tell) across the room, where the others who had been mesmerized by the computer monitor watched in half amusement, half boredum.

One brunet with long hair placed his foot on Sora's stomach, preventing any escapes or rescue attempts, with a roll of the eyes.

The swordsman held the grand sword with one arm, bulky muscles showing off through tan skin. His eyes were shadowed over, as he looked to the floor stoically.

"Sora, what did I tell you, what did I teach you, what did you see-- Hell! What were you thinking, bringing a stranger here? He could be-"

"A heartless? He's not!"

The raven growled, but Sora went on.

"Look, I know I shouldn't have kept him a secret! But he's real, he's human! I didn't believe it at first either. In fact, I had almost killed him myself when-"

The blade nudged forward,

"When what?"

"When he knew my name out in the open."

Both the sword and its master were still.

"Oh? Is that right?"

Sora, with the thick boot being pressed into his sternum, nodded breathlessly. This other brunet guy was occasionally applying as much pressure as possible, just for kicks.

"His eyes, too. I had Zexion check him out. He has a heart."

"But how would he survive? How long has it been? Ten, twelve years? It would be impossible for anyone to survive that long without air, water, food. His body would look like a reject from Night of the Living Dead."

Riku examined this swordsman, taking a few dull-witted moments to realize that this was Zack.

This was the leader that, without approval, would have him disposed of in minutes.

Oh, things were not looking good.

"Please Zack, I didn't believe it either, but it's real. You can't kill him, not again. Let him be one of us! Let him help us! Use him wisely, instead of wasting a perfectly capable body and heart."

The leader glanced up, looking over Riku with equally blue eyes as everyone else in this weird new world had. Arching an eyebrow, he smirked a little,

"This? Perfectly capable? It doesn't even look like he can walk, let alone fight."

"Please."

It was then, Riku made a mistake. A very big mistake that almost caused his life to end once more.

"Why don't you just get Cloud? He'll recognize me, and you'll know Sora's telling the truth."

Any warmth or emotion evaporated into chilling silence.

Sora being the only exception, incredible cerulean eyes dulled down, to a melancholy sorrow and pain. The brunet was the first to move on to the anger stage. Glaring at the silverete, he pressed his foot down hard on Sora's stomach, forcing out a grunt.

"You...didn't tell him?"

Sora looked away in shame.

"He's your best friend, and you didn't tell him? ...Alright."

Zack threw his sword to the side, where the large brunet effortlessly caught it. With a swipe of his hand, Riku was lifted by his collar from the chair.

Piercing eyes stared into his own, hallowing them in ways a reaper has been described to.

"I'll let you live, for Sora's sake. You will never say Cloud's name again, alright? If you do, I will personally break that scrawny neck of yours, you got that Riku?"

Zack replaced him to his sitting position, and turned to Sora, who sheepishly looked away. But it didn't stop the next words his leader spoke.

"Sky, you've got yourself a kick-ass day of training tomorrow for not informing your superior about this."

"Yes Sir."

Sora said, and the foot was removed, allowing him to sigh deeply in relief.

"You know he can't stay here without the training courses, right? Then there's the draft. So if you want to stay with your little friend, I'd recommend working him over extra hard."

With a nod, Sora brought himself to his knees.

"One more thing."

Glancing upwards, the teen paused in brushing off and rubbing his stomach.

"You should make sure he knows. Cloud, our enemy- everything. If you want him to survive in this horrid world, you'll do him that favor."

Swallowing with a scratchy throat, and clearing it a few times for good measure, Sora nodded once more, and rose to his feet.

Zack gave a sole nod, and, with the strong man who had so easily kept Sora down, returned to his place at the computer monitor.

With flushed cheeks, the brunette turned the wheelchair around, and proceeded to exit the main room. At that point, Riku wasn't sure whether to think it had went well, considering he was still alive, or that he may have been better off dead.

He felt even worse when Zack called to Sora, and they were at the edge of the door frame,

"Don't think I've forgotten about those extra drills Sky!"

The ride back to the infirmary was awkward.
And silent.

The words Zackary had said lingered fresh in Riku's mind, like minty toothpaste on a droll Monday morning in class.

Cloud...again.

What had happened? Why is it every time he tried to ask Sora, he would either change the subject, pretend not to hear him, or worse, walk away?

Soon enough, it was over, and the entrance of the medical room leered its ugly head once more.

Holding out a hand to help his friend, Sora stared at the floor. Riku ignored the help, and stood on his own. With his back to the brunette, he remarked cooly,

"I'm getting stronger, you know."

Sora sorrowfully turned his gaze to the floor.

"Good night, Riku."

"Good night, Sora. You're not off the hook yet."

When the younger was about to question what that meant, Riku had already began to walk through the door, to his cot.

The brunette, yawning (Zack hadn't been kidding about the extra drills-- 67 miles running on a treadmill; no breaks), and saying loudly,

"Good morning, Riku. Look I'm sorr-"

He stopped cold in his tracks when the sight of Riku's bed came into view.

Empty.

Glancing around the room feverantly, he called,

"Zexion...Zex!"

The older stood from his crouch in the corner, stalking slowly towards his younger, from behind.

The trained sixth-sense of the brunette teen kicked in, a little too late.

He turned, but the silverette had already pushed Sora against the wall, moving himself so every escape route was covered, and the boy was trapped.

"Alright, sing. Where is Cloud? Why does Roxas, Zack- everyone hate me so much just for saying his name?"

Sora shrank in the corner, averting Riku's piercing gaze. Glaring, the older shook Sora, making his back tap the wall a little. The brunette tried holding his ground, by keeping his eyes on it.

Until, that is, a pale hand forced his chin towards his disturbed, and so very sorrowful face.

"Please. I want to know."

Sora's eyes widened as if he wanted to cry.

"He's...dead."

Creasing his eyebrows in sudden anguish, and swallowing thickly, Riku responded with a dumbed,

"Really?"

The boy nodded feebly.

"He...It...A heartless. A heartless killed him in battle. It was a battle that we almost lost, a battle that would mean the end of any and all human settlements connected to us...Which is basically all of them."

"Tell me about it."

Riku, in his realization, didn't realize how painful it was for Sora to talk about his passed brother. But the younger went on.

"...About one and a half, maybe two years ago, it happened. We were attacked at the south wall, and we were met with an army. Everyone was giving their best, you know? Everyone. But...we got careless. A flight of heartless, led by a powerful leader, was going for the main-deck- that's where you met Zack. Most of us were distracted by bigger heartless, but Cloud noticed what they were doing.

You see, if the heartless ever breech the castle...it would be the end."

"Why?"

"First, they would kill as many as they could. Then they would go for the main-deck. It's there that all the information of tribes, cities, and every last human existence that we know of is. As it is right now, heartless are scattered all about the world. If they got together, as a whole, they would consume the planet. Cloud knew that. So he tried to stop them, by facing the leader."

"But..."

"But he was outnumbered. Ven saw him, and rushed in to help."

"Who's Ven?"

"You'll meet him later. Anyway, the leader... he grabbed Ven's sword in mid-swing, and hit him back with it. He was about to kill him...but Cloud..." Sora took a deep breath, "It was a sacrifice, you know? The leader needed to kill one of them, and Cloud made it himself."

Shaking, Riku dropped to the floor, sitting on his bum with his hands brushing and clutching the tiled floor for support.

"Ven was...isn't, the same. You think Roxas and Zack reacted badly? Never mention it to Ventus. You'll see why when we meet him. You just can't stare, okay? Even though it wasn't his fault, he blames himself. It's pretty horrible."

"Sora...what's his name?"

The brunette arched an eyebrow,

"Who?"

"The leader. That creature that killed Cloud."

A shiver ran down Sora's spine, bringing cold memories and a more painful present to light.

"Vanitas Umbra. Vain Shadow in ancient, dead language of Latin. He calls himself Vanitus."

Somehow, that name sounded extremely familiar.

"It is he who controls a majority of the heartless and began the attack on Earth. He's the one who started the war, and killed you."