Author's Note: I do not own ANYTHING pertaining to Kingdom Hearts. I only own Blastbone Clarkson, Charlotte Amaturie (to appear in later chapters), and their nobodies, and the Seekers, who will not be appearing in this world. This three-year schedule slip brought to you by…(STATIC).

Chapter Twenty: Prophesy

With Blaster taking the first watch, Sora, Nox and Xarch decided to rest in the abandoned apartment Blaster had found. Inside the apartment were a number of random pieces of junk, ranging from old tin cans of food to what used to be wooden furniture. Sora did manage to find a few mini mattresses in amongst the debris, carefully preserved in plastic covering. Also, amongst the debris, Sora found a few black traveling cloaks, similar to the ones the two nobodies used to wear, but preserved just as much as the mattresses. Using the cloak as blankets, Sora fell asleep first, with Nox soon to follow.

Xarch was unable to get to sleep, her mind racing through a number of thoughts, which were occasionally rudely interrupted with a loud snore from Sora. After half an hour of attempting to sleep, she finally got up. Blaster was supposed to be standing by the door, keeping guard. When Xarch went to find him, she saw that he wasn't there. Instantly thinking Blaster had abandoned his post, she summoned her Aerial Blades.

"Shouldn't you be resting?" Blaster's voice said. His voice came from behind, so Xarch quickly spun on her heel a little too quickly, losing balance for a second before steadying herself. She saw nothing.

"Blaster?" Xarch asked.

"Yeah," Blaster replied. He seemed to be on the other side of the doorway, but it was obvious that no one was there.

"Where the hell are you?" Xarch asked. "I feel like an insane person talking to thin air."

"Oh," Blaster exclaimed. He shimmered into existence, right next to the doorway. His right hand was moving away from the wristband. Sitting loosely in their holsters were the Anti-Heartless and Anti-Nobody revolvers, and Blaster's Keyblade sat next to him, leaning against his leg. Blaster himself was leaning against the brick wall.

"Like that cloak, don't you?" Xarch asked. She dismissed her blades and walked over to lean against the wall next to the futuristic and alien Keybearer.

"Well, I don't need to be invisible to realize something is wrong," Blaster said.

"Well," Xarch began, "it feels as if we've been here forever."

"We just got here," Blaster deadpanned.

"I know, I just can't get any sleep," Xarch replied. "It's been happening quite a bit lately. I try to sleep, only to find that my body is well rested and my mind won't shut off."

"That's not odd at all," Blaster replied. "I wasn't able to sleep once I got into my pre-teen years. Happens with the power that you were born with. You should know this already, but you are the Nobody of Char, one of the last two Torillians in existence. I am the other one. You should know that our race was known to meditate at night instead of sleep, gathering energy into our bodies from different forms. Some take it from the heat around them, some literally plug themselves into an electrical outlet. I believe I am one of the few who is able to gather energy from the stars, though some, if not most of those stars in this universe are actual worlds."

"Perhaps you could answer something for me," Xarch said. "It's about Nox and I. Will we disappear when we become whole like you?"

"No," Blaster replied. "True you have a piece of a heart, and some of our strength with it, but we've forged what we no longer had from what was left of our hearts. Unless you lose your piece of heart, there is a slim chance of seeing you disappear."

"Never thought of it that way," Xarch said. She was about to sit down when she saw something in the distance. "What is that?"

"Not what, but who," Blaster said. "Get inside."

ITFITFITFITFITF

As soon as Sora's head hit the proverbial pillow, he was fast asleep. He dreamed little, and what he did manage to dream sometimes escaped his mind like dust in the wind. So, this came as a surprise when, as soon as Sora had fallen asleep, he was in the most vivid dream he ever had. He felt a sense of weightlessness right from the start, and a light appeared below him. As he descended, light as a feather, he realized the light was coming from one of those stained-glass murals that he had not seen since he fought Roxas. The fact that it was his didn't dawn on him until he landed.

He stood, right there in the center, dressed in his new clothes, proudly facing out. Much like Blaster's he had circles on each side, each with an image of one of his friends. To the left were his friends from Destiny Islands, as well as Donald and Goofy. On the right were images of Blaster and his friends. Below him, just under his feet, a pair of circles held black and white images of Roxas and Naminé.

"Really cool, huh?" Roxas' voice said. Sora turned around and came face to face with his blonde Nobody. Everything about him was exactly the same as when Sora saw him just before taking on Xemnas for good.

"Roxas," Sora exclaimed. "What are you doing here?"

"My 'Spidey-senses' were telling me that you were asleep," Roxas replied.

"Really?" Sora asked.

"No, you idiot," Roxas said. "I can do this any time I want. I just decided to bring you here when you are asleep because it would have been a little bit too inconvenient if I did it in the middle of a battle."

"Oh," Sora said. He had a minor thought of being amongst a horde of Heartless before suddenly stopping, ultimately getting attacked and possibly killed. "So, why did you call me?"

"Yeah, about that," Roxas said. "I just wanted to make sure our connection was still working. It's boring in here. Day after day of darkness."

"You are my Nobody, aren't you?" Sora asked. "I thought you were supposed to be a part of me forever."

"Hey, just because I wasn't ever supposed to exist doesn't mean that I can't," Roxas said.

"So, you just want to make sure that you do still exist," Sora said. "And I thought Nox and Xarch were weird."

"You know Nox and Xarch?" Roxas exclaimed. "I thought they were the first to go after Castle Oblivion."

"Well, they were a little bit banged up," Sora said. "But other than that, they are fine."

"Are they wearing their cloaks or street clothes?" Roxas said.

"Street clothes," Sora confirmed. "Their cloaks were, apparently, ripped to shreds. I think they are a bit worried, though."

"I'm worried too," Roxas said. Sora looked puzzled by this statement. "I am a Nobody. I felt the others coming back."

"You too, huh?" Sora said. "Well, if you say they are back, then I guess they are back."

"Which is why I should warn you," Roxas said. "They hold grudges forever. They'll be coming back to you for revenge. Especially Flower-Power Marluxia."

"Oh boy," Sora said. He ducked his head, but brought it back up with a grin on his face. "What would you say if Naminé finished off Marluxia?"

"I wouldn't see that happening," Roxas said, snickering. He was aware that Sora was told of the events of Castle Oblivion. "You have a better chance of beating up Saïx with one hand tied behind your back while singing the theme song to 'Titanic.' I haven't even seen Naminé fight."

"Good point," Sora said. After a minute pause, Sora looked around. "So, how do I get out of here?"

"You can leave any time you want," Roxas said. "Just walk off the edge. Just do me a favor though," he added as Sora turned to his Nobody in shock. "Wake up before you hit the ground."

"Seriously?"

"Kidding. Actually, all you have to do is close your eyes and think of waking up."

"Oh lovely," Sora said, rolling his eyes. All of a sudden, Blaster's voice came out of the darkness, calling his name. "Looks like we test this escape mechanism."

"I'll see you later, then," Roxas said.

Sora did as Roxas instructed and disappeared in a flash of golden light.

ITFITFITFITFITF

"Sora!" Blaster shouted. "Wake up, you lazy bum!"

Sora jumped as the last syllable of Blaster's sentence fell on his ears. Sora opened his eyes, noticing immediately that it was still dark out, so it was early in the morning.

"What's going on?" Sora said, wiping the sleep from his eyes. "It's still early in the morning."

"I know that," Blaster protested. "But, if we don't move, we'll be discovered."

"How good is that cloaking device?" Nox asked, clambering out of bed.

"Good enough," Blaster said. "Everyone will have to huddle around me in order for this to work."

"Like we're all cowering under the same umbrella," Xarch said.

"A large umbrella that can hide us, but we must still be silent," Blaster said. "It will hide us, but it doesn't silence us."

Sora jumped out of bed, and stood close to Blaster. Once Nox and Xarch were next to him as well, Blaster hit the button and all four of them disappeared from view. And not a moment too soon, because a man in a black cloak appeared in the doorway. The man looked a little disheveled, and had a bit of a limp. Blaster motioned under the bubble that they skirt out around the wall and behind the man as he walked through the door.

"Lumos!" The man said. He had a gruff voice, and once the tip of his wand ignited, his face was visible. It held a number of scrapes and scratches. The man's eyes lingered on the mattresses that Sora, Nox, and Xarch had left on the floor, with the black cloaks as makeshift blankets. The man raised his wand and muttered another incantation. "Homenum Revelio."

Blaster's heart stopped. He had a feeling of something swooping over him, like a sheet in the wind, and wrapping him in its fabric. He tried to skirt around the walls, but stopped when the man lowered his wand and spoke in the kindest voice he could muster.

"Alright," the man said. "Come out. I know you are there."

"Crap," Blaster muttered, deactivating the cloaking device hiding himself, Sora, Xarch, and Nox.

"There we go," the man said. "Now I won't have to curse you."

"You knew where to find us?" Blaster asked.

"Yes," the man said. "I have come here under Professor Dumbledore's orders. I am Alastor Moody."

"Why did he send you?" Blaster asked.

"You know this Professor Dumbledore?" Sora asked.

"We've met," Blaster replied.

"It's kinda hard to talk to people I hardly know without knowing who you are," Moody said. "What are your names?"

"Sora," the brunette said, almost instantly.

"My name is Blastbone Clarkson," Blaster said. "You can call me Blaster if you want."

"Name's Xarch," Xarch said. "Nice to meet you."

"I'm Nox," Nox said.

"Nox?" Moody asked. The tip of his wand was doused. "Ugh. Lumos!" The wand tip ignited again. "Well, he sent me here to tell you the prophesy you heard about."

"What prophesy?" Sora asked.

"A prophesy that was made several months ago," Moody said. "The prophesy says that four people from another world will arrive on the night of You-Know-Who's downfall."

"No, we don't know who," Nox said.

"His name is Vol-…" Blaster began before being forcibly silenced by Moody.

"Don't say his name," Moody said. "For all we know, he could have Tabooed his own name."

"Okay," Blaster said, his voice muffled by Moody's hand. Blaster spoke again when Moody removed his hand. "He has a weird name, but his real name is Riddle. He's a dark wizard."

"The prophesy says that the four other-worldly visitors would be near the house of one boy," Moody continued. "The boy is instrumental to the final downfall of 'Riddle.' The boy will be marked as his equal, and neither shall live while the other survives."

"Say what?" Sora asked.

"Let's let the child in question figure this one out," Moody said. "There is more. One of the other-worldly visitors is killed in the final assault before You-Know-Who's initial downfall. One with darkness surrounding his heart, ready to corrupt it."

"Dibs," Blaster said, slowly starting to feel the pain of his heart flaring up again. "I'll get killed. It's not like there is anyone else here like that."

"Why did you do that?" Moody asked.

"Because of this," Blaster said. He began to clutch his chest in pain, then collapsed as the dark tentacles erupted from his heart once again.

(Scenes from the next chapter.)

ON THE NEXT "INTO THE FIRE": As Blaster struggles with his curse (Sora, Nox, and Xarch trying their hardest to fight the tendrils of Darkness sprouting from Blaster's chest), a moment occurs that shocks everyone (Blaster faints, then wakes up. "It's Volcano Day!"). Tune in next week for an all new chapter of "Into the Fire." Hopefully sometime within the next three years or so.

Virtual Journal:

ALASTOR MOODY: An auror, the magical equivalent to a police officer, he showed up at our hiding spot to help us figure out what is going in here. Battlescarred, he will not take no for an answer. His first appearance was in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire in 2000.

ROXAS (UPDATE): Nobody of Sora. Somehow, he's been appearing to Sora in his sleep, and is apparently unable to fully merge with Sora. What could be going on here?

ALBUS DUMBLEDORE (Late addition): Headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. An elderly man and the only one Tom Riddle, aka Voldemort, aka He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named, is afraid of. He sent Blaster in the right direction when he landed and knows about a prophesy that can turn the tide. Albus charmed his way in with Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's/Philosopher's Stone in 1997.