Authors Note:

So here's another chapter for you guys. No lie, I'm extremely excited for where this story is going and have a lot of plans for it. However that's a story for another time. Without further ado here you go.

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Last Time

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Turning his head to look behind him he was able to finally see her face. Her blue eyes stared back at him with determination within them and hint of something else, he couldn't place the emotion but given the situation he was in now wasn't the time for that anyway.

"You're Seth right." She finally spoke in more of a statement than a question. None the less he responded with a small nod of his head. "Good, then I'm not too late then."

"Too late? Too late for what? Who are you?" He started to turn around when she pressed the unknown weapon into his back again stopping him in his tracks.

He was growing frustrated and they both knew it. The girl smiled to herself as she looked at the boy.

"…its Xion."

"Huh?"

"My name, its Xion."

X.X

"Xion? What type of name is that?" Seth asked treading on ground he didn't have.

"My name is what it is, that's like asking what type of name is Seth?" the young girl retorted.

"Whats wrong with my name huh?"

"I'm just pointing out that its not nice to make fun of someone's name because it sounds different." She began to press the weapon into his back once again.

"Who said I was making fun of your name? I just asked a simple question is all…You're the one jumping to assumptions."

Seth was truly in a jam at this point. He was in an isolated part of the woods. Even if he yelled for help he doubted anyone would get to his position in time. To make matters worse besides her name he had no idea what she wanted from him.

"Even if you kill me here you won't get away with it there are way too many knights for one person to try and take down."

"Kill you? Who said I was here to kill you?"

"Wait your not?

"Look who's jumping to assumptions now."

"Then what the heck are you here for then?" He turned around and came face to face with Xion for the first time during their entire encounter. Though her hood still covered her face he could tell he had her attention. Then a swift motion almost as if a flash, he felt something against his neck. He glanced down at the foreign object, it felt like no blade he had ever gone against. Shock soon consumed his eyes as he saw the intruders weapon of choice.

"T..that's the…"

"You recognize it do you? This is the keybade. Both light and darkness ultimate weapon." Shock still had a grip of Seth even as she lowered the weapon from his throat and back to her side before it ultimately dispersed.

"Seth you and I need to talk."

"…about what?"

She smiled at him as the words she spoke echoed through his ears, "Your heart."

X.X

Keith still hadn't fully grasped the situation at hand. One minute he was angry at their master for keeping them all in the dark about what was going on. The next he was in a council meeting about to learn the truth about what was going on. Then finally he was being dragged into the forest with Jecht and a few elite Knights to track down this hooded figure and Seth.

Seth… How was it at every turn he was always able to find trouble even though he wasn't looking for it. Even when they were younger he remember that Seth was constantly getting into it with anyone who he felt disrespected him. He hated being looked down on him or even treated others differently. Old habits die hard they say and in Seth's case it seemed it was true. Three years hadn't changed him one bit.

However if he didn't get there soon then he would only be a memory. That's not how he wanted to remember him. Though they were still a ways from the forest you'd think the council would have some type of teleportation system they could use to get over there faster with how their able to keep tabs on everyone.

They were rushing past people who scrambled to get out of their way. He wondered if they were scaring them those thoughts quickly left his head as a voice reached his ears.

"Keith!?"

Stopping and turning around he saw Sera running after him. He waited for to catch up with to him. Once she arrived she bent over trying to catch her breathe, seemed she had been chasing after them for a while. Well either that or she was out of shape, but he wouldn't dare tell her that. "I've trying to get your attention for a while now…" she gasped out.

"Sorry had a lot on my mind.." he responded.

"We have a problem Seth is-"

"He's gone yea I know. That's where we're headed to now."

Wait how?"

"Long story short, seems he met up with the person the council is looking for…"

"Told you he'd be a help."

"Now's not the time for I told you so…"

"Sorry."

"Look I've got to go, you stay safe." He turned to run after Jecht and the others who had left him behind before he felt a hand grab his.

"I'm coming with you."

"Its far too dangerous for you…"

"I went through the same training you and he did if anything I'm on the same level as you two, difference is you have a keyblade and he doesn't know when to say quit."

"But…"

"I going and that's final."

"…fine just if things get bad you go to support got it."

She smiled and nodded her head. They both began to run toward the forest after Jecht in hopes of helping their friend.

X.X

"M…my heart?..." Even as he said it out loud it made no sense to him what was wrong with his heart it wasn't killing him. It hadn't done anything to hurt anyone that he knew of so why was she of all people concerned with it.

"Yes your heart." She walked to a rather large rock off to the side and sat on it. "Tell me, have you heard the story of the three elements Earth, Air and Water?"

"No I can't say that I have…" he didn't know when had moved but suddenly he had come to the realization that he was sitting besides her.

Pulling her hood down she closed her eyes and recalled as if trying to recall the story.

"Earth, Water and Air were all good friends almost like family in sense. They cared for one another and that strengthened their bond to one another. When one hurt they all did, it also applied when they were happy as. They trained just like you do to become warriors of the kingdom, and serve the king. They trained night and day to become better than they were before, it was that bond they shared that helped them excel as warriors as well. They helped any and every one they could as they continued on their paths."

"They sound like really nice people."

"They were…" she smiled as she continued. "On the day of their final test earth and water were to test there might against one another in front of two masters who had come before them. Those masters would deem them worthy or not of their ascension to master-hood. That day was the day everything changed for them…"

"How so?"

"As they battled against on another a small piece of darkness grasped at earths heart and caused him to panic. Seeing this after their test had completed, only Water became a master."

"That doesn't seem fair at all! We're taught that we should always be weary of darkness, you would think the masters would be forgiving of that?"

"True… but not all was as it seemed. One of the masters had manipulated the test if you will, he had caused the darkness to appear and attach itself to him."

"W…why would they do such a thing…?"

"This master himself had given into darkness long ago, and wish to have someone follow in his footsteps so he set his sights on earth."

"Why not the other two?"

"Water was skilled true, but she was not as vulnerable as earth while air was just a child at the time."

"…what happened next?"

"After he failed Earth was approached by the very master who had rigged the test against him…"

"Why didn't he attack him?"

"Simple he didn't know. It's also because he didn't know that lead him a=o a dark and dangerous path. See this master had planted the notion within his mind that he shouldn't keep the teachings of the master that had failed him, instead he should "create" his own."

"So what did he do?"

"He did what he thought was right and went off on his own trying to find himself and his path. While he did that he made many mistakes did a lot of unfortunate things that he thought were good things at the time."

"What about his friends? Why didn't they try to help him?"

"They did on multiple occasions. However their words never reached him until he struck down his own master…"

"Why did he do that?"

"He was forced to. He was trying to protect air from their master. After he had returned from his travel he came across air as he was about to be struck down himself by their master. Earth intervened and ultimately he struck him down instead. He would later find out his masters true intentions…"

"What where they?"

"He was trying to prevent a powerful weapon from being created by the other master who intended to use air as a catalus."

"You said their words didn't reach him until he struck him down… what happened when he heard them fully?"

"He made his finally mistake, he tried to avenge the loss of his and the manipulation of himself."

"Final mistake?"

"He confronted the other master hoping to put a stop to his plans once and for all. However things…well things don't always go the way there supposed to. Earth did confront him and because of not only his efforts but the efforts of his friends the masters plans were stopped but all of them payed a price."

"How deep a price?"

"Air lost his heart, Earth lost his body and Water was banished to the realm of darkness…"

"….steep price"

"Is being a knight really worth it?"

"Huh?"

"Is being a knight worth it, when this story could very well be your reality?"

"I…I don't know…"

"I didn't tell you that story so you could fear the fate you could blindly be walking into I told you that story because your heart is too valuable to lose to the darkness."

"What's so special about my heart? You still haven't told me that?"

"It's complicated. You see its…"

Suddenly a darkness that seemed to come out of nowhere surrounded them. Then small black creatures began to crawl up from the floor. They had these soulless yellow eyes that stared at both of them.

"Those are heartless!? How did they get here undetected the council would've warned us…"

"Stay behind me Seth" Xion stepped forward and summoned her weapon. Seth looked at her and back at the heartless. If there was ever a worse time to leave your weapon at home it would be now. He wasn't as gifted in magic as the others but he refused to back down and especially in front of her.

"No way am I missing out on this."

"Are you insane these things are nothing to play around with."

"Who says I'm playing around? Look I'm not stupid I know I'm not properly equipped but I can at least provide you some magical support right?"

"Here I was getting the sense that you didn't trust me?"

"Who said I did, the enemy of my enemy is my friend right?"

"Hmph." She smirked to herself as she started down the heartless. "Then lets do this!"

X.X

Just outside the forest Jecht and the others had seen the giant ball of darkness that was currently englobing the area around Seth and Xion.

"Well this is just perfect!" Jecht roared.

"I bet anything that Seth is in the middle of that…" Keith spoke up.

"We have to do something! We can't just leave him there he doesn't have his weapon with him." Sera chimed in.

"If we didn't have enough to worry about… I can't believe they found him already… I thought we had more time." Jecht said through clenched teeth.

"What's going on master?"

"…."

"I believe you owe us an explanation, does this have to do with why you refuse to allow him to graduate? Or why you didn't want him to get involved..?"

"Now is not the time-"

"NO! Now is the perfect time. What the heck is going on? Why is my friend being hunted by whatever this thing is?"

"…."

"Why won't you tell me what's going on..?" Sera had now made her to Keith and placed a calming hand on his shoulder.

"This won't help Seth right now. We need to figure out a way into this thing."

"I…I know, it has to have some kind of weakness right?"

"That thing there is what is none as an Aura Shield…" Jecht spoke up finally. "You won't be getting in unless the person who cast it is defeated or lets it down. However I'm not a very patient man…" He lifted his sword up over his head as he gathered his strength. " What your about to see kiddies is something that takes years of practice.

X.X

How long had they been fighting these things? It felt like hours had passed by since they first appeared and even longer since they had been striking them down. He was growing weaker by the second. Magic itself is was an easy principal to learn, however the constant use of it was a whole different story. He was a fire spell againt a heartless that had gotten to close to him watching it burn before it disappeared.

He returned his attention to Xion as she fought them. Her moves were elegant and flawless, Each step, strike counter seemed planned and calculated, yet she made it seem so natural. Even as she slashed through two heartless then turning around and eliminating another four. He had to admit she was extremely gifted.

He was so busy focusing on watching her that he himself hadn't noticed a blast off darkness hit him knocking him into a thick tree. The impact of his body hitting it left a deep indent within the tree as his eyes opened wide finally realizing he was shoot.

"Seth!" Xion yelled for him as she ran towards him.

"Tsk, tsk tsk. Can't believe you would go a turn your back on the organization for some wanna be punk like him." A voice called out. Hearing the caused Xion to stop in her tracks.

"It can't be…" She spoke in true horror. Suddenly a swirling portal of darkness appeared as a hooded man stepped. She quickly ran toward Seth but the figure grabbed her wrist and hed her there.

"Xion you've been a naughty girl you know that. What am I supposed to tell the boss man when I get back."

"He's your boss not mine!" She screamed trying to break free.

"You're making this a lot harder than it truly has to be if you come back with me then I'm sure we'll figure something out." \

"Shut up!" She yelled again as she flailed about trying to break his grip.

"Fine then be a naughty girl, either way you're coming with me-" A blast of fire interrupted the man as it his him breaking his grip on Xion as she moved away from him. She looked for her would be savior only to find it to be Seth. Struggling to maintain his balance, one arm hugging the tree while the other pointed out in her direction.

"That's…for shooting…me…you…jerk…" he struggled to say."

"Why you stupid brat! You have no idea what you're doing do you?" The fire had died down as the man's gaze fixated on Seth. "Not only are you interrupting official organization business, but you're making all that work I went through to miss your vital organs for nothing if you're still going to interfere."

He pulled his hood off and looked Seth directly in his eyes. An eye-patch cover his right eye, his hair was black and slicked back into a ponytail. His left eye was yellow as his lips turned into a toothy grin.

"Look kid I can probably let you off with a warning but next time-"

"Shut up" Seth said in defiance. "You don't own me…"

"HAHAHA! You think so huh well kid allow me to burst your bubble. We do own you. As a matter of fact we've been waiting for you to appear for almost 10 years now." He began to walk toward Seth. " As a matter of fact I'm more than sure the old man won't mind I just took you prisoner now and waited till he got back."

Xion cut him off keyblade in hand ready to fight.

"Really now? You're going to try and stop me? You have to realize you don't stand a chance right?"

"Even if that's the case I'll still be doing some good if you destroy me. Isn't that right…Xigbar?"

He scowled at her then smirked.

"Fine then, have it your way." He summoned his guns and took up his stance. " Just know it's your funeral… Xion."

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