The Resolve of All

Chapter 8: The Horrific Truth

Yen Sid was waiting patiently for his comrades to return, but he sadly shook his head at the realization that indeed the other six princesses of heart were captured...

"Kairi is in deep danger..." He motioned his glance to the adjacent room where Kairi was still resting. "She too will learn the ways of the Keyblade though."

Sora had gone back into the Realm of Sleep for now to train some more with the Dream Eaters, and he said he wanted to take the Mark of Mastery Exam again as soon as he got back.

Mickey, Donald, and Goofy returned to Disney Castle to fortify their defenses in that world to keep it safe from the darkness.

Riku though left the Tower without another word after Sora had left. From what the sorcerer could surmise, he is doing some reconnaissance on the Seekers of Darkness. He hoped that their new Keyblade Master would return soon and safely...

Roxas and Axel then barged into the study, not even surprising Yen Sid however since he sensed them coming.

"Yen Sid, we have some stuff we need to tell you." Lea addressed.

"And what kind of 'stuff' would that be?" The sorcerer inquired.

"Xion and Drex are missing!" Roxas informed them. "And we lost the other six princesses of heart!"

"...And our house burned down." Lea added.

"...Wait, what?!" Roxas turned his attention to the pyro. "Lea! What did you do?!"

"It wasn't mean this time Roxas, I swear!" Lea defended himself. "Just calm down..."

"Calm down? My girlfriend is nowhere to be found, Drex is gone, and our home is a pile of ashes..." Roxas then realized something horrific. "And we left the bag of ice cream in there!"

"Ice cream?" Yen Sid raised an eyebrow.

Lea then gave a good slap across the spiky blonde's face. "Snap out of it!"

"Thanks, I needed that..." Roxas rubbed his cheek.

"If you two are done conversing, I wish to inform you both on the location of your other two friends." Yen Sid responded.

"You know where they are?" Lea perked up.

"Indeed. I sense that they both reside in the world of Twilight Town nearby, although they are each located on opposite ends of the city." He informed them.

"I think I know where Xion is." Roxas deduced.

"Then you go after her, and I'll check on Drex." Lea stated.

"When you are done collecting your friends, return here so that I may advise our next course of action." Yen Sid said. "Now go."

"Thank you." They said in unison and then they both departed via dark corridor.

When the two of them departed though, Yen Sid frowned and shook his head in sadness... maybe seeing some sort of tragic premonition...

"Are they ever going to come up for air?" Pence wondered.

"You guys are being rude! It's not polite to spy on people," Olette told her two friends. "...especially when their trying to be intimate!"

"Quiet. I'm trying to take notes." Hayner silenced her objection.

"Like you'll ever use them." She responded with a smirk.

Pence and Olette laughed at Hayner's expense which in turn interrupted the couple nearby and they separated staring at the children in embarrassment.

"Hey! Mind your own business!" Drex addressed them.

"Oh! Guys let's make like a tree and leave." Hayner stated as the three children ran off.

"We're sorry!" Olette called out to Mona and Drex just as they all ran around the corner.

Mona sighed and joked. "Looks like we had an audience."

"It was a good show." Drex joked back.

"I know~." She smiled.

"I wish the circumstances were better though." He admitted.

"Me too." She agreed.

"You want another ice cream?" Drex asked.

"Yeah!" She beamed. "You got me addicted to the stuff now."

"Let's head to the Tram Commons then." He said as he led her back to the shop...

But the two of them were only yards away from the ice cream store when a very familiar pyro came out of a dark corridor right in front of them.

"Drex! You're okay!" Lea stated. "You had me worried there for a second."

"Lea? Hey... what's up?" Drex responded.

"The sky." Lea joked. "But enough about that, you and I need to get moving and meet back up with Roxas and Xion... sound good? Wait... who's that?" He motioned towards Mona.

"Hi! I'm Mona." She greeted.

"Hey there, I'm Lea, got it memorized?"

"Don't you get it by now that everyone has your name memorized?" Drex smirked.

"Nope." Lea simply stated. "Wait a sec... she's one of your friends you mentioned earlier. So... isn't she bad or something?"

"Well, she saved my life. So she's good in my book now." Drex defended.

"I guess the more the merrier then. Any friend of Drex's is a friend of mine." Lea fist-bumped Mona.

"Likewise." She smiled.

Suddenly, the trio was surrounded by Heartless as well as Nobodies. And there were a lot of them...

"How about we start by taking care of these guys?" Drex suggested.

They nodded at one another in agreement, and they summoned their Keyblades and then lunged at the numerous enemies together...

"XION! Where are you?!" Roxas shouted as he searched the train station at the top of the hill. "Maybe she's up on the Clock Tower... Yeah definitely!"

Roxas decided to climb the steps physically up the tower. She just had to be there, she just had to be...

He rounded the corner and saw there on the ledge... with her hood up... Xion.

"Xion!" He relieved. "There you are. You had me really worried."

As Roxas approached Xion... she did not heed his presence...

Roxas wanted to embrace her, but he grew concern for her and changed his mind by just sitting down right next to her.

"Where have you been?" The spiky blond inquired.

"Roxas..." She finally spoke. "There's something I need to tell you..."

Earlier...

Xion looked back towards town and noticed there was not a sound to be heard, except the usual whistling of the wind and the wisps of sand that scurried the ground...

"Why does this place look like a ghost town...?" She wondered. "I better get to the Cave of Wonders and save Jasmine then."

She summoned a dark corridor to take her to the desert. She guessed that the normal marauders would be a piece of cake for her... but if only she knew what was going to happen next...

Xion had arrived at the Cave of Wonders and weirdly enough she found a message inscribed in the sand... so they must have just been here.

LAMP ROOM. It said.

"Might be a trap..." She pondered. "Good thing those marauders aren't expecting me."

She continued her way down the giant cat's mouth and made her way to the end of the cave. In the Lamp Room... it was deserted... odd.

"Where are they?" She looked around.

Then suddenly, barriers formed behind the raven-haired girl, trapping her in the chamber!

"Guess I should have expected that." She remarked.

"Yes, you should have."

Xion looked around for the source of the mysterious voice, but her question was soon answered as Alliana teleported on the platform in front of her.

Xion immediately summoned her Keyblade and got ready for battle. "Who are you?!"

"You don't know me, but I sure know you, Xion." She greeted. "I am Alliana."

"Where's Princess Jasmine?!" Xion demanded.

Play Terra's Battle Theme for Alliana's fight on a second tab.

"Gone." She simply stated. "Darkness knows no bounds in its consumption of the light."

"How could you?!" Xion responded.

"Easy." Alliana smirked. "I just go along with it, and hopefully this will all work out for the best."

"How is this the best?!" She angrily replied.

She sighed. "I want everything to just... go back to the way things were... Xehanort can make that happen."

"Darkness will only betray you. You can't let yourself be its puppet!" Xion declared.

"How ironic for you to say that..." Alliana chuckled as she summoned two rapier swords.

"What do you mean by that?" Xion suspiciously inquired.

"Well... why don't you fight me and find out?" Alliana grinned as she leaped off the platform to battle Xion.

"Hope Drex doesn't mind I put you in your place." She retorted.

Xion lunged at Alliana, trying to get the first strike. But Alliana in response put the two hilts of her swords together and turned them into a windmill and started twirling them so fast that they blew Xion away into the far wall.

"You better get more creative than that!" Alliana stated as Xion recovered herself.

"Don't worry... I've got a few tricks up my sleeve." She responded.

"Then show me! Quit playing around." Alliana requested.

"You asked for it!" Xion remarked as she engulfed her Keyblade in light, Blade Charge.

Xion dashed for Alliana once again, and she gave a smirk as she did her windmill attack to blow her away once more, but this time... Xion cut through the wind with her powered-up Keyblade.

"What?!" Alliana exclaimed as Xion was right in front of her!

Alliana was able to dodge Xion's slash at the last second by sending jets of air from her feet and propelling her back on the platform which led to the locked keyhole.

"You better be more careful!" Xion taunted. "Don't want another scar carved into that pretty face of yours!"

"Not bad. But, let's see your how you deal with me face-to-face!" She growled as she dashed like the wind towards her.

The two girls collided in another display of power from both sides. Alliana made a downwards slash but Xion blocked it then countered only to be stopped by her opponent's other sword.

They were both relentless and ferocious with their physical attacks. ...Xion had the advantage in experience though, but Alliana was definitely holding her own.

Xion then took then initiative and rushed her opponent again. Xion delivered a firaga spell at her only to have an aero spell returned in response. The wind blew out the fire and Alliana rode the whirlwind and dodged her opponent's attack. Then Alliana continued to ride around, encircling Xion and trapping her in a conjured up tornado in the process.

The wind was howling and the twister provided no escape for the raven-haired Keyblade wielder. What's worse is that the wind picked up the sand in the cave and it became impossible to see at all now. Xion had to keep her eyes closed, but she was having an even tougher time since Alliana was sending shots of energy attacks from her safe haven in the dust devil she created.

What will she do?

One solution came to mind...

Xion pointed her Keyblade into the air and it glowed with an impressive yellow energy!

"THUNDER!"

The spell was so impressive, Pikachu would've applauded this thunderbolt. Xion sent a massive thundaga spell which lit up the entire chamber!

Alliana was electrocuted and then she landed on the ground smoking, and thus the twister of sand faded...

Xion was panting at the cost of her entire magic reserves, but it was worth it defeating Alliana. Xion approached the still smoldering body of Alliana, and to her surprise she actually began to stir and lay her body up against a nearby wall.

Alliana coughed. "Bravo, Xion. A very... shocking outcome."

"Any last words?" Xion asked as she pointed her Keyblade at her heart.

"Only two." She smirked. "Sweet Dreams..."

"Huh?"

Sleep...

Suddenly, Xion felt very drowsy... She knew she was tired from their battle but this was ridiculous!

"Why am I... so... sleepy?" She groggily asked herself.

Xion dropped her Keyblade and it was dismissed as she was struggling to keep her eyes open. She knew Alliana didn't perform that spell because it was definitely a young man's voice...

"Who...?" Xion fell to the ground unable to move, and she was on her last legs, trying to fight off the inevitable slumber...

Then someone else came into her slowly fading field of vision and helped Alliana up... It was Mark!

Mark then turned to Xion and gave a sinister smirk.

"Goodnight... No. i..."

Then everything went black...

"How much longer until she's reprogramed?"

"The file I got from Castle Oblivion says not long at all..."

"...Very good. The puppet will serve us until it is broken..."

"My superior, why not put her to the test... Maybe reunite her with Roxas?"

"Yes... An interesting test indeed..."

A/N- Oh no... Comment and review... and you'll get an update...