"Traxer!" was the immediate greeting he received as he came into the Gray Room, situated somewhere in the Castle That Never Was. He'd been hard-pressed not to simply yell out "I told you so!" when the Organization, as the Nobodies had taken to calling it, had accidentally unleashed devastating Darkness over Radiant Garden and, for all intensive purposes, destroyed it.

Naturally, they needed a new home to continue their research, and several months of searching yielded a world situated between the Realms of Light and Darkness. Despite the city and the large castle that made up the world, no one inhabited it, and Vexen had claimed it as their world- the World That Never Was, just as Nobodies were less than nothing.

The only survivors from Radiant Garden they'd seen were two new Nobodies that had joined them after losing their hearts. Vexen had been checking Twilight Town periodically for new recruits, though he likely regretted letting these two join.

Isa and Lea, now named Saïx and Axel respectively, were formerly two boys that had given Xaldin and Lexaeus more than a few headaches when they tried to infiltrate the castle of Radiant Garden. Beggars couldn't be choosers, though, and both had joined after finding little reason not to.

It worried Traxer how much Saïx had changed. He sported the same golden eyes and pointed ears that Xigbar had, alerting the former Keyblade wielder that he had embraced the Darkness. To make matters worse, Vexen had found that leading a bunch of Nobodies was harder than he'd made it out to be, and neither Axel nor Saïx were very willing to listen to his every bidding. After losing their Hearts and their home world to the Darkness, along with the lack of progress that anyone was making, the other members' opinions of their leader were dropping rapidly. Vexen himself seemed to want out of his position, but would never admit so publicly in the fear of seeming weak.

So, of course, it didn't take much convincing to get most of the Organization to back Saïx when he informed them of his desire to overthrow Vexen. Xigbar fully supported him, Axel had been his best friend when they still had their hearts, and neither Xaldin nor Lexaeus saw any reason to leave Vexen in charge. Zexion, out of his respect and loyalty to his guardian and fellow researcher, had tried defending him to little avail, and Traxer simply stayed out of the situation. He was likely the only supposed Nobody that could still feel hatred, and it was targeted at Vexen for not listening to his warnings.

Now, approaching three years after they had exiled Ansem the Wise, Saïx had taken over with a much firmer grip and, perhaps to add insult to injury, had demoted Vexen to bottom rung of the Organization's ladder. Traxer was concerned what would happen to the small league of Nobodies with one so affiliated with Darkness at its head, but, in the interest of continuing their studies and keeping his profile low, he couldn't challenge the young leader outright.

Saïx himself had the rest of the Organization running around the worlds to study the Heartless, which had been growing quickly in number, and their behavior around those with Hearts along with the Heart's reaction to the dark creatures. To make matters even more difficult, Vexen's research in an attempt to recreate the processes a heart undergoes, had created a new breed of sorts of the Heartless that they had dubbed "Emblem Heartless." When they found themselves under attack by the Emblem Heartless and defeated them, a Heart was released.

This had been momentous to the Organization up until they discovered that those released Hearts would quickly be consumed by darkness again and reform the Heartless they came from in the first place. It was a vicious cycle, but Saïx was determined to find a way to capture those Hearts before they could reform into Heartless.

The other Nobodies had all but concluded that this was nearly impossible, but one day, several Hearts had appeared and gathered together in the skies above the Castle that Never Was and had remained there, inactive. No one, not even Traxer, was sure how they had gotten there or why. Nevertheless, they gave Saïx a push forward in his quest to obtain Hearts.

Now, Traxer sighed as he turned to the one who had beckoned him. Saïx was standing to one side of the room, with Axel leaning against the window that made up one of the room's walls, and Zexion, Lexaeus, and Vexen all sat lounging on the couches they'd brought in. Xigbar and Xaldin, however, were nowhere to be seen.

"What?" Traxer inquired as he approached them and leaned forward against one of the couches.

"Tell me, do you know anything about a certain castle situated in between the Realms of Light and Darkness?" Saïx continued.

"And good morning to you too," Traxer mumbled. "You mean aside from this one?"

"Do you enjoy being difficult?" the new leader chastised. "No, I don't mean here. I mean another one, almost a fortress against the Darkness it lies so close to. Zexion came across it one day while out on reconnaissance."

"It's a huge, strangely shaped castle," Zexion reported. "Dark green in color and surrounded by nothingness except for a small rock face in front of its entrance."

"It could make an excellent secondary base for us," Saïx explained. "Perhaps for our research." Traxer stared at him.

"We live in a castle as it is," he pointed out flatly. "And there's eight of us. For what reason could we possibly need more living space?"

"One, for ongoing research projects," Saïx replied, obviously having no patience to Traxer's questions. "Two, in the off chance that something happens to this world or we find ourselves under attack, it never hurts to have a backup."

"So, in the event we have a repeat of Radiant Garden?" Terra sighed. "Why not just be more careful, huh?"

"Again: In the event someone or something attacks us," Saïx repeated. "We've taken extra precautions to assure this world does not meet the same fate as Radiant Garden. You know that."

"Okay, fine," Traxer shook his head lightly. "What if this other castle is inhabited? What then?"

"If that is the case, and it isn't just the Heartless or Nobodies like ourselves, then they aren't safe so close to Darkness. Whether we're involved or not, they'll need to leave if they wish to keep their Hearts."

"So, you'll relocate them," Traxer surmised. "And what if they don't want to move?"

"Then they'll simply have to deal with us until they see the error of their ways." Saïx's tone was level, but Traxer could hear the underlying threat in his words.

"I see," he replied. "So, where are you going with this?"

"I'm sending these three," he gestured to Vexen, Zexion, and Lexaeus, "To investigate the castle and convince any of its inhabitants to leave if necessary. Though I have no doubt they'll be able to handle anything that comes their way, will you join them?" Traxer shook his head.

"Sorry, but I'm not going to kick anyone out of their home. We've done enough of that as it is."

"Very well," Saïx grumbled. "Then I've got another assignment. Head back to Twilight Town and see if you can't track down the Heartless hiding there. Don't attack unless necessary, and report your findings back to me."

"Fine," Traxer nodded.

"Now, then." He turned his attention back to the trio setting out for this supposed castle. "I trust you're all ready to go?" Zexion and Lexaeus both nodded, though Vexen remained still and silent. It seemed there was still quite a bit of bad blood between him and Saïx. "Good. Then go!" Zexion stood up and summoned a Dark Corridor, and the three of them promptly departed through it. Once it closed, Saïx turned back to Traxer.

"And what about you?" he prompted. "Are you prepared?"

"I guess so," Traxer replied. "I know, I know. Get out of here and complete my mission. I'm on it." He summoned a Corridor heading for Twilight Town and left the castle, glad to get away from their new leader for a time.