Kingdom Hearts does not belong to me, though that should be obvious.

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The Calm Before the Storm

Blue sky. An endless expanse of the brightest blue surrounded us. Domino and I stood on the Glider, soaring through the sky of this vast, open world. The ground below was covered in grass. Vibrant green grass that sparkled from the dew. This was such a pretty world, but it was desolate. For fifteen straight miles, there was no sign of life anywhere. Domino could've flown us around all day, but I was starting to get a little irritated.

"Can we just stop now?" I asked, but he didn't even reply. "I need to get me something to eat." I then gasped, my eyes widening with horror. "Domino…we've been away from Utopia for almost a full two days and we haven't eaten…" I clutched my stomach and as if on cue, a loud growl was heard from within. "…anything."

"The greatest food comes from nature, Kane," Domino said, slowing the Glider down as we slowly lowered to the ground. "Finding it is the tricky part though."

As the Glider dematerialized from underneath us, our feet landing softly on the ground, Domino jumped into the air and clicked his heels together, falling back to the ground with a smile on his face. "This world has no inhabitants," he said, though I already knew that. "This is the perfect place to train, hang out, and have fun! We haven't had real fun since we left Utopia, so let's change that!"

I smirked at Domino's optimism. His happiness lit up any dark room he stepped in, for sure. Starlight appearing in his hand, he pointed it towards the sky. The sky was bright and beautiful, but a sun was absent in the sky. A ray of light shone down from the heavens and bounced off of the Keyblade, the new ray of light shining towards the ground.

"Kane, my dear friend, step back!" Domino said to me, and I backed up behind him, unsure of what he was going to do. "I sense that there's a lake underneath this ground." How'd he sense that? Did the ray of light speak to him or something? "The Keyblade's a lot more useful than just hacking and slashing, you know!"

And with that word, he slammed the blade of the Keyblade into the ground. The ground parted where the blade was, both ends of the ground stretching to several meters away from each other. Soon enough, before us was a huge opening in the ground. Inside was glistening, crystal blue water that seemed to be inviting us in.

"Wow," I mumbled, taking my satchel off and dropping it to the ground. I smelled the air. "It smells…fresh. How'd you know this lake was here?"

"There had to be something here other than grass," Domino said, stretching his arms out. "I use my powers to heighten my sense of smell. And I smelled this amazing freshwater pond." I smiled at Domino as he walked to the pond, dipping a foot in it to feel it. "Ah, relaxing. Cool, not too cold though. The perfect temperature."

"So how can a world be so empty?" I asked. "I read that the light in people's hearts is what fuels the heart of a world. If there's no life here, how can a world stay in existence?" I kneeled down next to the pond, sticking a hand in it to feel while waiting for Domino to respond.

"One of the many mysteries of the universe," Domino replied simply. He walked to behind me as I continued to feel the calming water. And then I felt his wet foot pressed against the back of my head. Before I could ask what he was doing, he had pushed me with his foot until I fell into the water, face-first.

I hadn't seen this coming. I looked around to see where I was. My entire body was disoriented. My head was pointing to the bottom of the pond, my feet sticking upward. I positioned myself normally and began to frantically thrash my arms around, swimming quickly to the surface.

My head broke the surface of the pond, and I stared up angrily at Domino who had an evil smirk and a glint in his eye. "Sorry," he said sarcastically, and I noticed his shirt was off and next to my satchel, along with the fedora. "Cannon ball!" he shouted, jumping right over my head and feet first into the water behind me. I shook my head like a dog, trying to get the water out of my hair as I laughed at Domino.

Domino's head bobbed out of the water and he smiled to me. "Isn't the water great?"

"What the hell was that for, jerk!?" I yelled out, punching his bare shoulder as he pretended to wince in pain.

"Remember when we were kids?" Domino asked me, and I shrugged. "When I'd want to go swimming in the Lake of Destiny, you'd always be too chicken to get in. I had to practically drag you in. Well, I solved that problem by pushing you in."

"Gee, thanks," I muttered in annoyance, peeling off my wet shirt and throwing it out of the pond and next to his shirt and my satchel. I did the same with my now soaked shoes and socks.

Wrapping my arms around his neck, I pushed him and shoved his head underwater. He popped his head out from under the water and returned the favor by dunking my head in the water. We continued this for a good minute or two, until we were both too exhausted to do anything more. We simply floated on our backs, the back of our heads against one another as we relaxed in peace.

"If only Tara, Kale, and Ty could be here with us, experiencing this awesome, cool water," Domino muttered quietly, but enough for me to hear him. At that statement, I quit floating on my back and looked down at Domino. He opened an eye and looked at me. "Yes?"

"Okay, before, you only wanted to be with me," I said, staring coldly into his eyes. "But now, all of a sudden, you want everybody else here with us?" Domino stood up in the water, inching closer to me.

"Because I realized what you wanted," Domino said, placing a hand on my shoulder. "Just remember, I don't ever want to lose you. So I'd do anything for you, Kane." Those words never left my mind after that. He wrapped his arms around me and embraced me in a hug, and I stood there awkwardly, wondering what had gotten into him. Letting go of me finally, he swam to the edge of the pond as if to get out.

Pulling himself out of the water, he lay down on the grass next to our things in silence. I swam to the edge and pulled myself out as well, soaking wet. Looking up at me from where he lay, Domino slowly stood up, making Starlight appear in his hand.

"Watch this," Domino muttered, raising the Keyblade in the air. "Aerora!" At first, nothing happened. But almost instantaneously, a gray orb of wind circled around the tip, and a strong gust of wind seemed to rush past me suddenly, knocking me on my back. Blinking a few times, I stood up, feeling my hair. It was dry. Come to think of it, my clothing was completely dry. Starlight vanished. "Wind magic. If I want it to, it can be completely harmless. Just a rush of wind. But I can also make it devastating. Like razorblades. To kill an opponent."

"And all I could do was make sparks from my fingertips," I muttered, staring at the palm of my hand. "How was I able to do that though?"

"What?" Domino asked me, walking towards me. "Use Thunder magic? That, I can't tell you. Normally the bond between a Keyblade and its wielder's heart is enough to form a magical bond. But you, that's the true enigma here…you were never passed the Key…you shouldn't have magic powers. You're a complete mortal." He raised a fist into the air. "I could train you, though!"

"Okay…so, how do I use Thunder magic again?" I asked him. "I haven't used any since we were in Salem. Is it all in the wrist, or…?" Unsure of what to do, I flicked my wrist back and forth, expecting lightning to shoot from my palm. "This is utterly ridiculous."

"What's ridiculous is that for once I don't actually know something," Domino muttered, clenching his fist. "Your Thunder abilities appeared once, if only for a minute, but you don't have the blood of a Keybearer. So how…" His eyebrows raised so much they looked like they were ready to jump off of his forehead. "That black strike of lightning? Could that be the cause?"

"That black strike of lightning…" I repeated, remembering when I had been struck before we had left Utopia. "Was it made out of…darkness?" Then I had remembered something. Mr. Brunner had used the powers of darkness before. Domino had as well. "How did you use the darkness, Domino? I thought you said that the darkness wasn't supposed to exist."

"Darkness doesn't exist, Kane," Domino said, holding his hand out to the sky. "Darkness is just light…or rather, the absence of light. Some Keyblade wielders…or rather, all of them can use the power of Light. Only a few exceptional ones can create darkness. Such as I." What he was saying didn't make much sense. "Some people can control the Light so well, that they can erase the existence of Light. If you erase the Light that you're trying to utilize, only what we call Darkness remains. Watch…"

He held his hand out towards Kane, and an orb of light appeared within it. The light warmed up Kane's insides to the point that he began to smile without realizing it. Domino explained further, "Now watch, as I slowly erase the Light." The ball of light began fading, darkening, until Kane's blood began to chill. The temperature around him must have lowered. The ball of light was now a ball of…darkness. It looked like it was swirling around like a hurricane, ready to spiral out of control. "Darkness is only present in the absence of Light. I slowly took away the essence of light until nothing but the Darkness within remained. Understand now?"

"I guess," I replied.

"Now that was in slow-motion," Domino said, making the ball of Darkness vanish. "Here's how it looks if you're quick with it." With one thrust of his hand, he sent a beam of darkness blasting out of his palm to beyond the blue sky. "Taking away light until its nothing but Darkness in only under a second."

"But Darkness…" I said, putting a hand on his shoulder. "We used to call it Black Magic. Isn't that...evil? Unsafe? Look at how corrupted it made Mr. Brunner, and he was one of my favorite teachers."

It's not evil unless you don't know how to use it properly," Domino replied, chuckling.

"Hey…" I muttered, clutching my stomach. Before I jumped into the lake, my stomach was completely empty. I could've eaten a few hundred pounds of Tara's famous chicken. But now…the feeling was gone. I felt full again. It was almost unnatural. "I'm not hungry anymore?"

Domino, grunting in confusion, bent down and ran a finger along the water. He brought his finger towards his nose and sniffed it, looking intrigued at the scent of the fresh water coating his finger. "Weird…this lake is made of the same components that make up the Lake of Destiny. And if my conclusion's correct…it's even stronger than the Lake of Destiny. Kane, this lake actually heals people. Not only from wounds, but from hunger and thirst, even exhaustion. That explains it."

How the hell did he figure out that so quickly? Domino caught my confused stare and said, "By creating Darkness and utilizing it, one can heighten their sense of smell. I know what the Lake of Destiny smells like, and I know that the Cure spell has a certain…flowery scent to it that nobody can detect. So this lake has a spell cast on it…but from whom?"

And only for a brief second, I saw Domino's nose twitch. Domino's eyes darted to the side as if trying to detect something that I couldn't even sense. "Speaking of…" Domino muttered. "This place was desolate only minutes ago. Someone's already crossed the border?" Almost instantly, I heard a shrieking sound, like chalk on a chalk board or a needle scraping against glass. Looking to the sky, the two of us saw a Keyblade Glider that darted through the sky even faster than Domino had gone.

Before I could see what it looked like, it vanished, and the shadowy form of a human fell from the sky, landing only inches away from Domino and I, almost landing in the lake.

He was tall, barely six feet, lean and muscular, with dark skin, purple eyes, and messy black medium length hair. He wore black leather combat boots and black combat pants, a purple and black belt with a pouch on his right hip, a dark purple sleeveless shirt with a single shoulder pad on his left shoulder, and a fingerless glove on his left hand. He looked to be around nineteen.

"Netherwood," Domino said, smirking at our uninvited guest. "Dante Netherwood…you found me. Congrats."

"Okay, Mister Leader, what do I do now?" Dante asked rather rudely. "I helped break that barrier so I can be free...is there anything more you want me to do? If not, I'm on my own from here on out."

"Exactly," Domino replied, motioning to give Dante a high-five, but Dante didn't even try to give Domino that satisfaction.

Dante smirked. "I normally don't play well with others, but I must thank you for showing us that there was a way out…even if it meant killing everybody else down below." His tone dropped to a menacing one. "You…" He reached forward and grabbed hold of Domino's collar. "You killed all those people! You told me…the sacrifice would be their light! That we would use all of their light to open the barrier! Not shatter it by taking the lives of millions! Heartless bastard!" He yanked on Domino's shirt and threw him to the side, letting go and watching the purple-haired teen fly to the side.

Domino, standing up quickly, made Starlight appear in his hand, and he swung it, only for it to be deflected by another Keyblade wielded by Dante. "Oathbreaker!" Dante screamed out, revealing the name of his weapon. It looked like a normal Keyblade with the color scheme of black and purple. It was around three feet longer than it was supposed to be.

"Hey, I got you out, didn't I?" Domino asked, backing away from Dante. "And what do you care about all those innocents? They've done nothing but put a barrier on Utopia, one that kept us confined for years!"

"That's just it; they're innocent!" Dante replied, swinging forth his Keyblade again. Domino barely jumped out of its range, the tip of the blade cut slightly into the skin of his bare chest, a line of blood dribbling down. "I may fight for the Darkness, but I'm not cruel. I care about human life."

"Using the Darkness means sacrifice, dedication, and hard work," Domino replied. "And I helped the two of us, plus the other fourteen, to escape. I even have my best friend here." He pointed to me. I gave him a look as if to say, Don't get me involved.

"Prepare to share Elijah's fate," Dante replied. Running forward, he shot a beam of darkness from his Oathbreaker. Domino simply deflected it with his own darkness. The two stood their ground, each trying to overpower the other with their darkness.

All this madness with the Darkness that Domino had himself tangled in…what was he thinking? The dark was cruel, unforgiving, and unremorseful. How could anyone use something like that? And that lie that Domino had told Dante…making him believe that everyone on Utopia would be safe…how could he do that? All of the emotions from before that I had felt back in Salem came rushing back. Domino only cared about himself, and me. He didn't care about anyone else. Should I even keep him as a friend? I truly believed that he cared about me, and loved me as much as a best friend could. But lying and killing others…that wasn't right!

Exploding with rage, my whole body tingled with power, and soon, my hands were sparking with white electricity. Pointing my hands towards Domino and Dante, strikes of lightning escaped my palms. A tiny strike of lightning hit Domino, sending him flying off to the side. A large lightning bolt shot towards Dante, who flew into the lake unconscious.

Domino shakily stood up. Instead of scowling, yelling, or looking the least bit angry or upset, he smiled and started laughing. "You used Thunder again! And this time it was…white! Lightning made up of…light." As if just noticing Dante in the water, he looked to him and said, "I guess…is he dead?"

"I don't know," I replied, unsure. Dante Netherwood began to sink into the depths of the lake. "I guess…he is. Oh dear god, I just killed somebody." The feeling started sinking in. I couldn't be a murderer. But Thunder…it wasn't supposed to be a strong as normal lightning! It shouldn't have killed him!

Breaking the silence, we heard something sounding like feedback. Domino seemed to know what it was. Rushing to his shirt next to my satchel, he undid the button from his shirt. Enix's button! Was he contacting us already? Domino began speaking into it: "Master Enix, you there?"

"Yes, it is I," the voice of Enix said in a static voice. "So, how is your journey the past three days? Kale is just dying to hear the details, hehe."

I gasped. "Three days?" Time must flow differently in every world. That would explain it. "How did he take the news that we were gone?" I decided to ask.

"Oh, he cried for a few hours," Enix said, and I dropped my head in guilt. Leaving him behind was the best thing we could do for him, but I felt sorry that he had to stay by himself with people he didn't even know. "At least he's safe… He's made great friends with Maleficent and Yen Sid! The three are chasing each other around outside. Makes me wish I was younger…anyway, listen, I had to tell you something. No matter whom you meet…whom you see…trust no one unless you know everything about them."

"Where's this question coming from all of a sudden?" I asked. "Did something happen? And why did you say 'At least he's safe'? Safe from what?"

"Just trust me, Kane, Domino," Enix's voice said, his voice starting to become scratchier and scratchier with every passing second. "No matter who you meet on your journey, whether you know him or not, do not trust them until you know for sure that they're good people. Trust no one. Because even the kindest people have the darkest motives. Isn't that right…Ibiki?"

The name sent shivers up my spine. Why did he just say Ibiki? Domino looked as confused as me. Domino was about to say something more, but soon a loud gunshot filled the air around us. The noise came from the communication device. After the gunshot noise vanished, it was immediately followed by another, followed by a noise that sounded like…the shattering of glass.

It sounded as if it was actually near us, but it was just coming out of the button. "Enix!?" I yelled out, shocked at what was happening. There was a gunshot…two of them. And the glass…most likely the castle…was shattering all around Enix. "Are you there!?"

When the sound died down a new, cold and familiar voice began speaking through the button. "Hello, boys. Good to know that the two of you are alive and well."

I was speechless. Domino, however, took no time processing this and yelled out, "Ibiki Kamikaze!?"

"Ding ding ding, give the Domino his prize," the person on the other end, Ibiki, said, a slight chuckle after his words. "Don't worry much. Kale, Maleficent, and Yen Sid are all okay. I know you've been having all your fun, but I need you. Come to the world where Enix once resided in. We can talk there."

"Wait a minute!" I wailed out, not wanting to stop talking to Ibiki without getting answers first. "What was all that noise!?"

"Get here now before I hunt you down, you two," Ibiki said, and he didn't speak again.

Domino, frowning, raised Starlight into the air and summoned his Keyblade Glider. The two of us jumped on, after the we got dressed and I strapped my satchel on, of course, and began heading towards the sky. "What's Ibiki doing alive?" Domino asked as if he wanted him to stay dead. What was going on here? Domino was turning out to be someone completely different. Ibiki was back. And whatever happened to Enix…well, I feared the worst. I looked down at the water, and my jaw dropped.

A hand raised itself from the watery depths, clutching the grass on the ground, attempting to pull itself up from out of the lake. "Domino!" I shouted out.

Domino looked to the lake where a second hand rose from the depths, the Oathbreaker in its hand. A blast of darkness shot from it, heading towards the sky where we were. Domino swerved hard to the left, quickly avoiding the darkness as it headed off into space. "He didn't die after all," Domino muttered, just as we crossed the border.

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I'm sorry for the long wait! I had a slight writer's block, but I'm back (I'm hoping!) This is the first chapter to feature an OC from someone other than myself! Anyway, Ibiki is ALIVE!? What shall befall our heroes? How will Kane deal with Domino's hidden, rutheless personality?

OCs:Dante Netherwood belongs toDemonfox25.