Chapter Two: I'm Nobody, Who Are You?

I was lying on the ground, that I was sure of. But beyond that, I was clueless. Everything about me seemed…jumbled…blurry. From my ability to form a coherent thought to the strange sense of numbness that enveloped my entire body.

Somewhere in the deep recesses of my mind, I noted that I was no longer in the cave on the Destiny Islands. No, I was on an entirely different world, it seemed. One where the sky was pitch-black and no stars shone.

I attempted to sit up, but found that I had no control over my limbs— almost as if the numbness was paralyzing me. Or maybe I was simply too weak to move. My eyes slowly closed, giving in to the urge to sleep. Then—

"Where did you come from? Who are you?"

With some difficulty, I re-opened my eyes, only to find a man staring back down at me.

He was…unusual. His eyes were an odd shade of amber-yellow, which contrasted sharply with his long, slightly spiky blue hair. An 'x' shaped scar marred his face slightly, but was worsened by the disgruntled expression on his face.

"Well, are you going to answer my question?" he asked once more.

I could only blink in response. He knelt beside me, picking up my wrist and feeling my pulse.

"Ah, I see," he murmured before saying 'Cure'. The familiar warmth that accompanied the healing spell washed over me, returning the ability to move to my fingers.

"Hm, you can move a little more…still can't move enough, though." His brow furrowed, and the intensity of his disgruntled expression worsened. Almost under his breath, he muttered "Guess I'll have to carry you."

Next thing I knew, the blue-haired man had scooped me up and started walking. From this higher vantage point, I was somewhat able to get an idea of my environment. I was in some kind of city with dark buildings.

Actually…everything was dark. From the sky to the ground. The only object that broke this monochromality was a large, white castle that loomed in front of us.

And we were headed straight for it.

As the blunette carried me, I noticed I was starting to regain more and more feeling in my legs. With some strain, I managed to stretch out my legs, much to the blue-haired man's surprise. He stopped in his tracks.

"Hm, regained the feeling in your legs, have we? Perhaps you'll be able to walk, then." He sat me on my feet, then let go. The world seemed to spin around me, and I stumbled. He grabbed my arm before I hit the ground in an effort to steady me.

"…Or maybe not," he added, the slightest hint of a smirk gracing his lips in amusement.

I could only blink in response as I stared up at him. It was amazing how even just the slightest smile could change how a person looked so much. The man sighed and looped one of his arms around my waist. "Come. We need to get to the castle."

Slowly, we made our way towards the huge, white castle. The closer we got, the easier it became to walk. Finally, I was able to walk easily, with no help. The blunette noticed this and quickly released his hold on me.

I looked up to him, opening my mouth to speak. At first, no words came out; but then, I managed to croak out a single word.

"Who—?"

Ugh. My voice sounded horrible, foreign even to myself. However, the man stopped to look at me, surprise evident in his amber eyes.

"You're starting to find your voice," he noted, almost to himself. Then he spoke to me. "Very well. To answer your question, my name is Saïx. Now, can you tell me your name?"

I furrowed my brow. I wasn't sure if I'd be able to get out an entire sentence; one word had been hard enough. Slowly, I spoke my name, straining to get each syllable out.

"I—ona…"

To my great surprise, the man- Saïx's- eyebrows shot up as he looked at me in a state of total shock.

"Iona…" he murmured, reaching out and tilting my chin up so he could look into my eyes. "If not for the eyes, I wouldn't believe it." He said the words so quietly, I had to strain to hear them.

Then the change in his demeanor was gone and Saïx wore the mask of composure once again. He turned away from me and continued on his way towards the castle. I followed after him with a sigh.

'What was that all about? What a strange man…'

We finally made our way to the castle. I couldn't help but gape at it—the place was huge. Then I hurried after Saïx, who'd continued up the stairs even when I stopped.

Once inside, I found myself standing in a large, spacious room. The grey-and-white color scheme of the castle's exterior was continued inside.

'Yeesh, whoever lives here needs to invest in a home decorator.'

"Iona."

Saïx's voice echoed through the room, making me jump violently. The blunette stood on a staircase, a slight frown upon his face. "This way," he said. "It's time for you to meet the Superior."

'Superior?'

With yet another sigh, I followed him up the staircase and through several long hallways. The castle was truly dismal; though neat and clean, the lack of color (and life, for that matter) bored me to the point of counting how many windows I passed. I was almost to my thousandth window, when suddenly—

"Oh, gods! I'm sorry, I'm sorry! I didn't mean it!"

A boy came sprinting down the hallway, followed by an elder man—who was pursuing him with a look of pure loathing in his green eyes. Before I had a chance to react, the boy plowed straight into me.

We toppled to the ground and all the air was forced from my lungs. The boy groaned, then gingerly propped himself up on his elbows.

"Ugh, sorry about that." He stood, pulling me to my feet as well. I studied his appearance with interest. The boy had fluffy blond hair, styled in some sort of mullet, lovely seafoam-green eyes, and a goofy grin on his face.

"Hiya," he said cheerily, "the name's Demyx. And you are—?"

"Demyx, you imbecile," interrupted the elder, also blond, man before I could even begin to answer. "You need to answer for what you did!"

"And just what did Demyx do, Vexen?" Saïx asked wearily, while Demyx hid behind me in an attempt to avoid Vexen's glower.

"That dolt ruined my experiment! All because of some Shadow Heartless he decided to name Chester!"

Demyx pouted, his eyes going wide with innocence. "But I can't find him! He's lost!"

"Demyx," interjected Saïx, a scowl on his face. "Now is not the time for this foolishness."

"But—"

"No buts. You'll help Vexen clean up the mess you made while I take Iona to the Superior."

"Oh, so your name's Iona? Well, see ya later~!" Demyx said with a wink, before following Vexen back into what I presumed was the lab. This left Saïx and I alone once more.

The blunette heaved a sigh and turned away from me, heading towards the end of the hallway.

"Come, we've almost reached the Superior's office."

We walked for a few more minutes before finally coming to a standstill in front of- who would've guessed it- a plain, white door.

'Again with the white.' I thought dryly. Saïx knocked on the door, then pushed it open and ushered me inside.

The room was very sparse, save for a large desk in its center. A silver-haired man sat at the desk. He looked up when Saïx shut the door, then rested his gaze on me. His amber eyes were curious, yet also calculating, and he looked at me with intrigue.

"Saïx, who is this?" His voice was deep and his tone serious, as if he found very little time to be light-hearted.

"Her name is Iona, sir. She's a newly-formed Nobody."

'A 'Nobody'?'

"Hm, interesting," the silvernette murmured. Then his eyes met mine once more. "Iona…my name is Xemnas. I am the leader of Organization XIII."

'Organization XIII? What the heck is that? Some kind of secret club? And what the hell do they mean, a 'newly-formed Nobody'?'

I frowned, confused by this man's- Xemnas'- words. He rose from the desk, and I took a step closer to Saïx—Xemnas was quite tall, a fact I found quite intimidating. A slight smile crossed the silvernette's lips.

"You have no need to be intimidated by me, Iona," he said gently. "I realize that you're still very disoriented—but don't worry. I'll help you sort things out."

"W-What— h-happened?" I asked, my voice cracking.

"I'll explain everything," he told me. Then he glanced back at Saïx. "Saïx, go prepare a room for her. The newest member of our little…family…should be made welcome."

"Yes, sir," the blunette replied curtly. The he spun on his heel and left, shutting the door behind him. I turned back to Xemnas.

"E-Explain…please," I implored.

"Of course, but first…if you'd be so kind as to follow me." Here Xemnas held out his hand, and a swirling blue-purple-and-black portal appeared before us. He walked through it and- after a moment's hesitation- I followed him through.

It was an odd sensation, walking through the portal. One second I was in Xemnas' office, the next I was in a tunnel of pure darkness. If I glanced out the corner of my eye, I could see Heartless creeping alongside me. But- to my surprise- they made no attempt to attack.

Then I was standing on the shore of the most bizarre beach I'd ever seen. The sky was black, save for a single light on the horizon, which bathed the beach in an unearthly glow. The waters were a deep purple—or maybe they, too, were black. I honestly couldn't tell.

Almost as soon as I stepped onto the shore, my memory seemed to clear. The thoughts in my head seemed to aline, and I found myself thinking clearly for the first time since I'd awoken. I looked up at Xemnas, eyes wide with surprise. He chuckled slightly before speaking.

"Your memories have cleared, am I correct?"

I nodded slightly. "Good," he said, "what can you tell me that you remember from before?"

"Well," I began, noting in the back of my mind that I'd regained my ability to speak. "I remember just about everything. Nothing from before my sixth birthday, of course, but that's always been that way. I remember…going to search for my twin brother."

"Oh? A brother?" Xemnas' eyes lit up with curiosity.

"I've never met him, don't know who he is," I replied nonchalantly, though I was fully aware of how blatant this lie was, and of the photograph still in my pocket. "I was going to find him…before. What…happened to me?"

Xemnas sighed, brushing a strand of hair away from his face. I couldn't help but notice how his tan skin made his amber eyes stand out, made them seem even more piercing than they were to begin with.

"When you were attacked by Heartless…one stole your heart."

"My heart?!" I sputtered, reaching up and pressing my fingers to my neck, searching despearately for a pulse.

Nothing.

I had no heartbeat.

"You lost your heart, Iona," continued the silvernette, "but you were strong. Rather than simply fading away…your body and soul persisted. You became a Nobody."

"A Nobody?" I questioned. He nodded.

"Yes, a Nobody. Just like everyone else in Organization XIII. You see, we are all missing our hearts, all incomplete. That in itself is our goal: to destroy Heartless and collect hearts, so that we may complete Kingdom Hearts and become whole once more."

I sighed, then looked to the light on the horizon. I still wanted to find Riku more than anything. But I didn't know how not having a heart would affect me…

"I want to help."

I looked Xemnas in the eyes, a determined expression on my face. After a moment, he nodded slightly.

"Very well. You will become the fifteenth member of our family…of Organization XIII. But you will need a new name, as you are no longer 'Iona'."

He held out his hand, and the letters I, O, N, and A appeared. They began to spin around me faster and faster, until an X appeared as well and they finally slowed. When they finally stopped moving, a new word shone in front of me in a golden light.

"Axion," I whispered.

"The new you," agreed Xemnas. "From now on, you will be known as 'Axion', Number XV of Organization XIII. Tomorrow, you will officially join our ranks. But for tonight…you need to rest."

The silvernette held out his hand, making a portal appear once more. We walked though, only to find Saïx waiting for us.

"I've prepared a room, sir," the blunette said.

"Very good. Take Axion to her room. She will join us tomorrow to be properly…acquainted with everyone."

Saïx and I left the office, walking down the hallways we'd come up earlier. I trailed behind the blue-haired man, eyeing him curiously. He looked familiar somehow; like I'd seen him before, but couldn't place the when, where, and why.

"Saïx?"

He turned to look at me, a rather bored expression on his face. "Yes?"

"Did we ever meet? You seem so familiar, but I just don't know why." The blunette stared at me for a moment before answering.

"Perhaps…but I do not know for sure. Now come, you need to get some rest." I frowned; his reply hadn't answered my question in the least. But that was probably the most I was going to get from this strange man…for now. So I gave in and followed him through the castle.

When we finally stopped, it was in front of a door with a blank brass plaque on the front. Saïx waved his hand across it, and when he pulled away, I saw that the name 'Axion' was not etched into it.

Axion…

My name, yet not my name.

"This will be your room from here on," said the blunette dryly. He pushed open the door and we walked inside.

The room was small, with only enough space for a small bed, a desk, and a dresser. Of course, the white-and-grey color scheme was carried over in here, just as it was everywhere else.

'That's it,' I thought. 'I'm re-decorating this room. It's mine, after all.' I turned back to Saïx.

"Thank you, Saïx." He started slightly, before nodding.

"You are welcome, Iona," he replied quietly. My eyes widened slightly. He'd called me…

"You called me 'Iona' instead of 'Axion.' Why? Xemnas- er, that is, the Superior- changed my name. Granted, I still like 'Iona' better…"

"Iona," the blue-haired man interrupted. "You are a terrible Nobody."

"Excuse me?!"

"Nobodies aren't supposed to feel emotion. We lack hearts to feel with, after all. But you…you've kept acting as if you were whole, like you can feel, from the moment you awoke."

I could only stare at him. How could he expect me to act any way other than how I always had? Besides, I didn't- no pun intended- feel any different, other than my lack of a pulse.

With an irked sigh, I turned away from Saïx to glance in the mirror hanging on the wall…

…and promptly let out a shriek of horror.

"My h-hair," I whispered. "What the hell happened?!"

The once silver locks had changed to a warm chestnut brown. Only one streak of silver in my bangs remained to remind me of the original color.

'How will I ever prove to Riku that we're siblings if we don't look alike?' I thought, trembling slightly. Then a hand on my shoulder made me jump, and I glanced up at Saïx.

"When a person loses their heart, but is strong enough to become a Nobody, sometimes our appearances become slightly…altered," he told me, almost gently. If he hadn't just told me about the whole 'Nobodies-can't-feel-emotion' thing, I would've sworn he actually cared.

"Like your eyes?" I blurted out suddenly, before I had a chance to think about my words.

"What?!"

My face grew warm. Why did I have to open my big mouth in the first place? In all actuality, the more I looked at him, the more I felt that I did know Saïx from somewhere. Except his eyes weren't amber, they were…

"Green. Your eyes were green before you lost your heart. Am I correct?"

"How…?" Saïx started to speak, but trailed off. Instead, he shook his head, the ghost of a smirk on his lips. "You are strange, Iona. Perhaps one of the strangest Nobodies I've ever met. And I've met Demyx, so that's saying something." He turned to leave the room.

"Saïx, wait!" He glanced back at me.

"What?"

"You never answered my question. Well…you never really answered any of them, but I mean the first one. Why do you keep calling me 'Iona'?"

"Perhaps…I just prefer that name. Goodnight, Iona." With that, he left, shutting the door behind him.

"What a strange man…" I muttered aloud, before flopping down onto the bed. Suddenly, I was insanely sleepy; all of the day's events had finally caught up to me—I'd left Disney Town, met Kairi and discovered the identity of my brother, then lost my heart and died.

But, somehow, the desire to find Riku had helped me hang on, and I survived only to awaken as a Nobody and become the newest member of Organization XIII.

'Talk about a busy day,' I thought sleepily. I sighed and turned the lamp beside my bed out. Within minutes, I'd fallen into a deep slumber.

If only I didn't dream so much.