Day 7

Xurik blinked, the bright white ceiling of his bedroom greeting him as he woke. He sat up, staring around the room. A wide window looked out over the World That Never Was -- a dark city stretched out far below the floating citadel. He slowly made his way to the large room outside of his bedroom -- what was it called, the Grey Area? Someone had told him its name at some point, but he barely remembered. His memory had been nothing but blurry so far.

"Eww. You're awake?" a blonde woman said with a scowl as Xurik emerged from his bedroom. Her name, he remembered vaguely, was Larxene. Looking up, a man smirked and waved. Xigbar?

"Hey, Xurik. Welcome to the program, as they say."

Xurik stared at him blankly. Across the room he could see a few other members of the Organization... Axel, Saix, and Roxas.

"Heya, Xurik," Axel said cheerfully. He smiled broadly for a moment, then smirked when Xurik said nothing. "Something I can help you with there, chatterbox? You're no better than this guy." He jabbed a finger at Roxas. Xurik peered at him -- the boy looked oddly familiar. They had been created around the same time, hadn't they?

"Ah, I remember now," Axel suddenly said. "We were supposed to convene in the Round Room today. Blegh, meetings..."

Xurik frowned, cocking his head to the side. "Round... Room?"

"Yup. Apparently the boss man's got some big news. Wanna head over there now?"

Xurik shrugged. He saw no reason not to. To be perfectly honest, he had no idea what was going on here half the time.

"I'll take that as a yes," Axel said with a sigh, apparently growing weary of Xurik's silence. He turned to Roxas and motioned for him to follow. "You too, kid. Time for a field trip."

-------------------

"Good tidings, friends," the silver-haired man said, staring down at them from his perch on the tallest chair. Xurik and Roxas were sitting silently on chairs next to one another; Axel was across the room. "Today is a momentous day. I am pleased to announce that a new comrade has been chosen to wear the coat."

The other members of the Organization shifted in their seats with interest, peering down at the floor. At the base of the room, a lone figure stepped into the center ring. The person's hood remained up, masking their identity.

"Number XV," Xemnas said with a smile. "Let us all welcome one of the Keyblade's chosen."

Xurik blinked. Keyblade? The word sounded vaguely familiar. He suddenly remembered hearing it when he had come before this room -- he had been here before, hadn't he? He and Roxas had joined the Organization at the same time. An image of himself and Roxas being brought into the room by Axel filled his mind. They had been given numbers... Roxas was Number XIII, and he was Number XIV.

A number and a name... that was all he had, really.

The memory was shaken out of his mind as he stared down at Number XV, and realized with a start that she was staring back up at him, an unreadable expression on her hooded face.

Day 8

"Xurik, your work begins today. I will issue missions, which the Organization expects you to carry out." Saix straightened. "Think of these early missions as exercises. You still have much to learn before we put you to a real test." The man smirked, then glanced over at Axel, who was lounging on one of the couches within the Grey Area. "Axel will be joining you your first time out. Isn't that right, Axel?"

Axel looked over at them and rolled his eyes. He sluggishly got to his feet. "Oh boy... what, are you making me the kid's mentor now?"

Saix smiled humorlessly. "Surely you don't mind showing Xurik here the ropes? Xurik, come see me when you're ready to go."

Saix walked away, leaving to speak with Roxas. Axel sighed. "Well, you heard the man. Starting today, I'm your babysitter." Axel paused; Xurik stared up at him silently, waiting for him to continue. Finally Axel rolled his eyes. "Sheesh... quit acting like a zombie, and let's get this show on the road." He turned to go, but at that moment Xurik caught sight of the hooded girl. Something about her felt strange; he stood there, staring at her idly. When Axel realized that Xurik wasn't following, he turned, and caught the direction of his glance.

"Hey, what's wrong? You worried about the new kid? What was that name again..."

Saix approached, having finished speaking with the blond boy. He glanced at the girl. "Number XV, Xion."

"Right, I knew that."

Xurik frowned. "Xion."

Smirking, Axel nodded. "Got it memorized, Xurik?"

"Yeah."

Axel folded his arms. "You sure? How 'bout my name, then?"

"You're Axel."

"And... Number XIII?"

"Roxas." At the mention of his name, the blond boy turned his head.

"And our boss's name?"

"Shouldn't you get going, Axel?" Saix said, annoyed. Axel rolled his eyes.

"Yeah, yeah. Sheesh. Do you want me to educate the kid or not?" He held out his hand; a dark portal appeared in the center of the room. Xurik and Roxas exchanged glances, then Xurik silently followed Axel in.

"Um, what are you waiting for?"

"I found the chest," Xurik said with a frown. They were standing in some kind of tunnel system within... what was it? Twilight Town? "That was the mission. I'm done, right?"

"Uh, Xurik... there's this thing about chests," Axel said, sighing. "They have stuff in them."

Xurik blinked, staring from Axel to the chest. "So..."

"So?"

"I should... open... the chest?"

Axel smirked. "Yes, that is generally what we do."

Xurik paused, then tapped the chest with his weapon. It sprang open, revealing a small bottle. He took it cautiously.

"Good work," Axel said with a grin. "You can keep what you found. So, whaddya think? Got the hang of this mission business?"

Xurik rolled his eyes. "Yeah." This was ridiculous. He wasn't sure what the point of all this was... but even if he didn't remember anything, all he knew was that it was almost too easy. He muttered under his breath.

Axel raised an eyebrow. "I'm sorry, speak up? Coooouldn't quite catch that."

Xurik sighed, then turned to face the man.

"I said, that was too easy. I'm not an idiot."

For some reason, Axel seemed to find this funny. "Ha ha! Alright, fair enough smart aleck. The missions will get harder soon enough. But for now, this is what you get. And no successful mission is complete without a little icing on the cake. C'mon."

Axel began walking away, and Xurik tilted his head. "But don't we need to return to the castle?"

"RTC?" Axel said, looking over his shoulder. "We'll do that later. Don't you remember the hangout I took you and Roxas to? Come on."

Xurik sat on the ledge, staring out at the city. The sun was setting, and yet it never seemed to move. Was it always like this here? It was warm, at the very least. Was it really safe to be sitting this high? It would be almost effortless to lean too far forward and fall.

Axel extended his arm, handing him something light-blue on a wooden stick. It looked vaguely familiar.

"Here ya go. The icing on the cake." Axel paused as Xurik took it. "You remember what this ice cream is called?"

Xurik frowned. He had enough trouble remembering that it was called 'ice cream' in the first place. He shook his head slowly.

"It's sea-salt ice cream," Axel said, smirking again. "C'mon, I already told you once. Get it memorized, man."

Axel took a bit of his, and Xurik followed suit. He stared down at it, surprised at the odd taste.

"It's... salty. And sweet..."

Axel chuckled. "Xurik, you said the same exact thing the other day."

"Really? I don't remember."

"Hey, what has it been, a week since you two showed up?"

Xurik shrugged. Axel peered at him curiously.

"Well? Come on, man, you must remember that much." When Xurik said nothing, Axel sighed and stared back at the sunset. "Well, that's okay. Today's where it all really begins anyway."

"It... does?"

"Sure! Here you are, out on the field, working for the Organization... today, you're one of us. Roxas too... I think he had his first mission today."

"I guess," Xurik said quietly. He took a bite of the ice cream. Was he really a true member of the Organization? There was still so much he didn't understand...

Who were these people? And why was he here?

Day 9

"So that was a... Heartless? What are they?"

"Dark creatures who roam about, searching for hearts," Marluxia said with a smirk. "They're formed from the darkness in the hearts of humans. Your job is to collect those hearts."

Xurik paused. What was a heart? Was that the thing that had appeared after he defeated the Heartless? He looked down at the weapon in his hand.

"Is... there anything I need to do to collect them?"

"No. So long as the Heartless are felled by your weapon, the Keyblade, the hearts will be captured."

"Oh," Xurik said quietly. "Why do we need to collect them?"

"To bring them together, creating an almighty force known as Kingdom Hearts."

"Oh. And that's something we want?"

Marluxia nodded, flipping the hair out of his eyes. "Completing Kingdom Hearts is the Organization's primary objective. And to do that, we need all the hearts we can possibly find."

"So, is that our job?" Xurik said, struggling to understand everything. The subject was fascinating to him, if only because he knew nothing of what he was doing in the Organization. "The Organization just collects hearts?"

"Actually, you are the first of us to accomplish it," Marluxia said thoughtfully. He pointed at the Keyblade. "The rest of us can defeat Heartless, but we have no way of collecting the hearts they release. Eventually, the hearts will turn right back into Heartless. You see, then, how special you are?" An idea seemed to spark in his head; a look of concentration passed over his face. "With power like yours..."

The shadows around them twitched, and Heartless began to surround them. Xurik turned around quickly, slashing through them as if by instinct.

"Here come more of them," Marluxia said quickly. He slashed his scythe through the air. "Each one is a gift, Xurik. Squeeze every last heart out of them!" He glanced at the weapon in Xurik's hand. "That Keyblade... the things that could be done with that sort of power..."

Day 10

Xurik slashed through yet another Heartless. As far as he could tell, these were everywhere -- and it was his job to destroy as many as possible. Was that really all there was to working for the Organization?

"All right," Zexion said, peering at the heart escaping from the Heartless with a faint smile. "Now that the mission is over, do you have any questions?"

"Sort of," Xurik said, remembering what he had been meaning to ask someone since the day before. "The Kingdom Hearts thing... what is it? I know it's made of hearts, and it's some kind of force, but what's it for?"

"Kingdom Hearts will complete us," Zexion said simply, brushing the steel-blue bangs out of his face. "That's the Organization's goal."

"What do you mean, complete us?"

Zexion sighed. "Xurik, you and I and all the Organization's members are what we call Nobodies."

The boy's eyes narrowed. "E...excuse me?"

"With a capital N," Zexion said, rolling his eyes. "It's a name, for those of us who are missing a vital piece of who we are: our hearts."

Xurik placed a hand on his chest. Was that true? "I... have no heart?" But hadn't Marluxia said something about hearts coming from humans, before turning into Heartless? Did that make him inhuman?

"Correct. Like all of us, you entered the world without one. But you can help us get them. Kingdom Hearts is made of the very things we lack -- a multitude of hearts. It has the power to complete us. Are you starting to see why you're so important? Each of us has a vital role in the Organization. Yours is collecting hearts."

Xurik continued to stare down at his chest. Hearts... what were they? His lack of one made him incomplete apparently... but what did that mean? Did that mean he would never be whole until he found one? What was the difference?

-----------

Day 11

"Ugh, this is the worst," Larxene said bitterly, glaring unabashedly at Xurik. "Whose idea was it to send me along on your stupid baby mission? Do I look like I run a nursery school? Let Demyx handle this stuff. It's not like he's good at anything else."

Xurik peered at her curiously. Why was she so wound up? It wasn't his idea to go on a mission with her, that was Saix's job, and --

"What? WHAT? You got something to say?" Larxene suddenly snapped, startling Xurik.

"N...no. I didn't say anything."

Larxene rolled her eyes, looking away. "Pfft, you'd be nothing without that Keyblade." Her face suddenly lit up. "Oh ho! I just got an idea. You can do today's mission without your Keyblade."

"What?" Xurik's eyes narrowed. Why did he have to do it without his Keyblade? Saix had something about using darkness today... but didn't he need the Keyblade in order to collect hearts? "Why?"

"Because I said so, that's why!" Larxene snapped. "Saix told you to practice using darkness, didn't he? Well, sink or swim."

"But I don't know how to--"

"Look, it's not that hard," Larxene said with a groan. "And you're not gonna learn if you keep whipping around that oversized key." A Heartless appeared nearby; she pressed her hand to her chest. "Perfect. Just reach down deep -- where you heart would be if you had one -- and draw from your power there."

She pointed at the Heartless, and a bolt of lightning suddenly exploded from her finger, utterly destroying the creature.

Xurik sighed, then did as he was told as more Heartless began to appear. Where his heart would be, huh? Where was that? He assumed his chest... that's where everyone kept pointing when talking about it. He closed his eyes, focusing intently on the power allegedly hiding within him. As the Heartless approached, he found himself feeling oddly connected to it. He nervously extended his hand.

It felt like a wind was suddenly rushing through his body, moving up through his core, down his arm and out his palm. A dark purple orb suddenly shot forth, destroying the Heartless in one hit.

"Could you take any longer?" Larxene said sarcastically. She sighed, folding her arms bitterly. "If you're our big-shot Keyblade wielder, then we're in deep doo-doo. You'd better pull it together, or we'll never finish Kingdom Hearts. Unless, of course, we put someone else on Keyblade duty..."

"What are you talking about? Who else is there?"

Larxene scowled irritably. "None of your beeswax. You just worry about defeating Heartless and collecting hearts for us. Maybe, one day, you'll be almost mediocre at it."

------------

Day 12

"According to Saix, training two recruits separately is taking far too much of the Organization's time," Vexen explained coolly. "Therefore, today both you and Roxas will be training under me."

"Um, okay," Xurik said quietly, glancing sideways at the blond boy. They had yet to have any missions together; Number XIII had been being trained separately so far. Now, however, the two found themselves side by side in the middle of Twilight Town. Xurik didn't know anything about Roxas, other than that they had been created around the same time.

"Now, listen carefully," Vexen continued. "Your mission today is to perform reconnaissance in this area."

"Reconna-what?" Roxas said, confused. "What about fighting Heartless?"

"Oh, there's far more to the Organization than that, boy. Our work wouldn't go half as smoothly if we didn't gather the needed intelligence beforehand." Vexen smirked. "Fortunately, you are in good hands. I will be by your side today to help stimulate those insensate minds of yours. First, take a look around the immediate area, and report anything unusual you find. And don't go wandering too far until you've carefully examined the clues closest at hand."

Xurik and Roxas exchanged glances. What kind of a mission was this? There was nothing to do but obey. The three set off, walking around the square and taking anything of moderate interest.

"I think they sell jewelry here," Roxas said, pointing out a shop with a sign depicting various rings and trinkets.

Vexen rolled his eyes. "Anyone can see that."

"I guess this place sells clothes?" Roxas continued, trying again as he pointed out a second shop.

"You guess? Are you daft? What else would it be?"

Xurik frowned. What kind of answers was Vexen looking for? He decided to give it a shot.

"Well... this thing we're standing on looks different than the rest," he said slowly. "It's like a road."

"Fascinating... and?"

"Er," Xurik said, exchanging a nervous glance with Roxas. "Maybe... it shows that the town is well-traveled? Or that this part of town is important enough to have a road at all?"

"That's a little better," Vexen said reluctantly. "But not enough. How so?"

"Well, there are a lot of shops," Roxas chimed in. "So... this could be the center of town?"

"Could be? Are you asking me or telling me?" When Vexen didn't get an answer, he sighed. "You're both looking but not seeing. Here's what I see: this whole town was built along a mountain. That's why the roads slope. Houses have been built along the terrace. And at the top is a station. The trains there are the town's primary system of transit. Up there, see that clock tower? That's the station building. Based on it's location, we know the tracks are probably elevated. And this must be downtown. All these shops in one place... Now what about this path you pointed out? Trams must run here. See, look closer. There are marks."

Roxas stared at him in disbelief. "You figured all that out just now?"

"But that's just it!" Vexen said emphatically. "I only stated what I saw. There was no 'figuring' involved. That's the next step: analyzing the data you find. The clothing and jewelry shops tell us how these people live. This whole town is a blueprint of their lives."

When neither of the boys said anything, Vexen sighed and shook his head.

"Distressing. Very distressing. Your minds weren't made for this, were they? Well, you're not off the hook yet. If I let you two quit with these results, I'll be the laughingstock of the castle."

---------------

Several hours later, Xurik and Roxas trudged wearily behind Vexen, having analyzed everything within sight. They had managed to figure out a variety of things about the town, like where the trams were kept and where people probably passed through frequently -- none of which seemed relevant to Xurik. Finally, Vexen turned to them.

"Hmm, not bad. You're finally starting to see the bigger picture. But while I applaud your efforts, you both need to be able to see these things at first glance. Your goal should be to gather the maxiumum amount of data in the minimum amount of time. Spend too much time dallying, and you risk being seen. Sometimes the locals will be wary. You need to be warier."

"Okay," Xurik said quietly. All he wanted to do was collapse into his bed. What time was it? It was impossible to tell here, when the sun never moved.

"That concludes today's mission. Any questions or concerns?"

"Um... how often do we have to do this?" Roxas said wearily.

"Whenever the Organization needs to know more about a world, naturally. Every world is unique, with its own terrain, values, Heartless population... any number of variables that could be turned to our advantage in the missions ahead."

"Hang on a second," Xurik said suddenly. "What do you mean, 'every world'? Are there others?"

"Yes, boy," Vexen said with a sigh. "You didn't think you'd be mulling about here forever, did you? You will visit many worlds for many reasons... but our ultimate goal remains the same."

Xurik nodded. He summoned the Keyblade in a flash of light. "Kingdom Hearts."

Day 13

"Do you know what a Limit Break is?"

Xurik and Roxas exchanged glances. Neither of them had any idea.

"It is the most powerful move at your disposal," Lexaeus explained. The powerful man clenched his fist for emphasis. "One that only works when you are on your last legs."

Xurik nodded blankly, although he still had no idea what the man was talking about. The shadows suddenly shifted; a large Shadow appeared.

"A Heartless," Roxas said quietly.

Lexaeus nodded. "Time for some practical application."

Before either of them had any time to react, Lexaeus grabbed both of the boys by their collars and slammed them together with unimaginable strength. Their skulls collided painfully; both of them staggered backwards, eyes watering.

"Owwww," Roxas hissed, doubling over. "Mutt muzz zat for?! Nngh..."

"There," Lexaeus said calmly, no hint of amusement in his voice. "Now you're on your last legs. Let's see you use your Limit Breaks and defeat that Heartless."

Xurik hesitantly nodded. He stepped forward, then reached down within himself for the darkness he had found the other day. In his pain and frustration, he found that the darkness seemed amplified, more powerful.

With a mighty shout, Xurik suddenly dashed forward, slashing at the Heartless with his Keyblade. His entire form radiated darkness as he hacked away at the creature; the ground around it erupted, showering it with dark purple flames. The Heartless only lasted a moment in this tempest of darkness before vanishing into smoke.

"Impressive," Lexaeus said with a smirk as a second Heartless appeared to take the place of the first. "Now you, Number XIII."

Roxas nodded, still wincing. He drew his weapon -- a silver sword, the hilt in the shape of the Nobody emblem -- then ran forward. The sword glowed brilliantly, and seemed almost to pull him through the air as it dealt blow after blow to the Heartless. Beams of light began to shoot out of him, sweeping across the ground like beacons. The Heartless was no more.

"Well fought," Lexaeus said, allowing a slight smile. "Organization members are often asked to conduct solo missions. The only person you can count on out here is yourself."

"So I've noticed," Roxas muttered, rubbing his head irritably.

"I have a question," Xurik said, seizing the opportunity before they had time to return to the castle. The other members of the Organization weren't very helpful unless he had their attention during a mission. "Why are we building Kingdom Hearts? What happens when it's done?"

"We will unite with it. You, me, Roxas, everyone in the Organization... we will gain hearts of our own."

"I don't understand," Roxas said quietly. Lexaeus shook his head.

"When the time comes, you will. In the meantime, there are deeds to be done, and only you can do them, Xurik."

"And... Roxas, right?" Xurik said, glancing at the blond boy who was looking at Lexaeus expectantly.

Lexaeus hesitated, then nodded. "We can use all the helping hands we can get. But you, Xurik, hold the key that we need. You are invaluable in building Kingdom Hearts. In the meantime, both of you have much to do to reach that goal."

"Are they good things?" Roxas asked.

"Good for the Organization."

Xurik narrowed his eyes. What was that supposed to mean? He exchanged a skeptical glance with Roxas. The two boys had barely spoken outside of the two missions they had been brought on so far, but Xurik felt an odd connection to him. Perhaps it was the fact that they had been created so close to one another... otherwise, Xurik had no reason to feel the strange sense of familiarity around him.

"We should return," Lexaeus said finally, creating a dark portal. The boys nodded, following him through to the Castle That Never Was.

Xurik felt uneasy with some of the members of the Organization... but their goals were the same, weren't they? No matter what their intention, they all wanted the same thing -- to become whole. If a heart was all he needed for that, he would do his part to get one. There could be no harm in that, no matter who these people were.