Largest chapter yet! And they're only gonna keep getting bigger!!

FYI, I may not be able to update again in a while. Finals are starting, and I'm rather swamped. So enjoy, ok? Oh, and I know I made Gackt a little whiny, but give him a break, he's in a new world with no one familiar around. I thing that entitles him to a little whining.

Also, as far as I'm concerned, volume 14 and up of Tsubasa have yet to happen. Personally, I didn't like what CLAMP did to Syaoran and the others, so until I get more information of that, Syaoran is Syaoran, and Fai is human and has both eyes! If you don't know what I'm talking about, look up You're correct on both counts!

PeaceLoveOcelot: Micky is part of a new Korean band, known as Dong Bang Shin Ki, or DBSK. Look them up!!!! As for the movie, it was in the opening part of chapter three.

alphaskiier: You know I'm typing more! Tell me who you thing they are, I'll give you a preview for the next chapter!

ChibiNeo24: Most of my old stories are on Hiatus. I'm planning on rewriting them eventually. Osuwari!

Kudos to my beta AkumakoRonso, who totally rocks!

Disclaimer: Kingdom Hearts is the dirty little love child of Squarenix and Disney. Do I belong to either corporation? Nope, didn't thing so. So Sit Boy, and enjoy the fruits of my labor!

Recommended music: Strange Names and A Song of Storm And Fire.

Chapter Six: Swords and Wings

"Are we there yet?" Daisuke whined as he draped himself over the back of Hikaru's chair. They'd been flying between worlds for over a week now, and the teen was bored out of his skull. After sealing Traverse Town, the group had decided to head out.

"We told you earlier Daisuke-kun, we should reach a world in a little while!" the twins answered in typical unison.

With a sigh, Daisuke flopped down in his chair, eyes closed as he leaned his head back. Over the past week, he'd invented new games to play with Dark, figured out how to banish and summon the Keyblade, and had read every scrap of paper on the ship. 'I wish I'd brought something to do, even if only something to draw!' he bemoaned.

'What, talking to me isn't good enough for you anymore?' Dark muttered in annoyance. The spirit was feeling a bit of cabin fever as well.

'It's not that Dark, it's the lack of th-' "Wha!!!" Daisuke yelped as the ship was violently rocked. In the back, Duzell shot up from his meditation, and Gourry was awoken from his nap. Grabbing the armrests, the teen dug his nails into the cloth as he yelled up to the twins. "What's going on?!"

Hikaru struggled to keep the ship straight as Kaoru yelled back. "We're entering the atmosphere!"

Duzell nodded as he strapped himself into his seat. "This happened when we entered Traverse Town as well," he explained as Gourry struggled with his own seat. "It only lasts a moment, then we're on the ground," he said, mostly reassuring himself.

The vampire king was right. Within a few minutes, the shaking and vibrating stopped, and Daisuke sighed in relief as he unbuckled himself from the chair. "I wonder where we are?" he thought out loud.

"Only one way to find out!" Gourry said happily as he pulled the door open.

The place they landed was a pine forest, with nothing but trees all around them. It was twilight, so they couldn't see very far, but Duzell assured them that no one was around. Confidently, Daisuke stepped out of the ship, and on to vaguely familiar ground. It reminded him of the paintings he'd seen of Feudal Japan.

"Come on guys, let's go!" he exclaimed, jogging out into the woods, heading for a thin line of light in the distance. On his shoulder, Wiz purred and chirped happily, glad to be out of the ship.

It was only the work of a few minutes for Daisuke to reach the tree line, his friends a minute behind him. Slowing, Daisuke peaked out around a massive pine tree, only to run right into another boy his age. With yelps, they sprang back from each other, the other boy placing his hand on the hilt of a sword at his hip. "Who are you?" he barked in a demanding voice.

"That's my question!" Daisuke argued as he inspected the boy in the dim light. He had short light brown hair, and expressive hazel-brown eyes. He was wearing what looked to be a brown hakama, and a light green haori.

Narrowing his eyes, the other boy straightened up slowly, letting his hand drop. "…Syaoran," he offered shortly.

Grinning in an attempt to help the teen relax even more, Daisuke held out his hand. "I'm Daisuke!" he said happily. Hesitantly, Syaoran told Daisuke's hand, shaking it.

The peaceful moment was short lived as Duzell and Gourry came crashing through the trees, the blond panting as he leaned against a pine. At once, Syaoran turned to look at them warily, settling back into a defensive stance.

Before anything could happen, a steady tramping from the road drifted to their ears. At once, Syaoran ducked behind a tree, Daisuke and the others following his example. A company of men came down the road, men dressed in the traditional armor of Samurai. Two bay horses were being led in the middle of the troop, each with a single passenger. One was a tall blond man in white and blues, while the second was a teen girl with short red hair. Both were knocked out.

At the sight of the girl, Syaoran's fingers squeezed around the tree trunk, his jaw tight with anger. 'At least they haven't found Kurogane-san and Mokona,' he thought weakly. 'And they most be close if I can understand this Daisuke person,' Once the troop had passed, he let out a strangled, "Hime!" before stalking after them.

"Wah! Syaoran, wait up!" Daisuke called as he followed the teen, Wiz holding on to his shoulder. The teen must have heard him because he slowed down long enough for Daisuke and the others to catch up before picking up speed again. Daisuke jogged level with the taller teen as he asked, "What's going on?"

Syaoran refused to say anything at first. Noting this, Duzell strode up to his right side in order to try and talk. "We are not your enemies Syaoran," he intoned. The boy jerked his head in the vampire's direction, but only for a second. "If you tell us what has happened, then we might be able to help you."

The teen sighed as he slowed down in his pursuit. He'd been thrown off guard by Duzell, because he wasn't able to sense him like he could Daisuke. He shook his head. "It wasn't our fault. The local Daimyo has been having trouble lately, and buildings keep getting destroyed. We were in the wrong place at the wrong time. We came across the things that were attacking another outpost, and managed to drive them off. The Daimyo must have had a messenger posted there though because those Samurai came after us. We were scattered, and now they have Fai-san and Sakura-hime!" He growled in frustration as he stared at the troops ahead of them.

Gourry grinned as he clapped a hand on Syaoran's shoulder, making the boy jump slightly. "Well, don't worry about your friends Syaoran-kun!" he said cheerfully. "We'll help you get them back!"

"Tell me something," Duzell asked as Gourry backed off. "The 'things' that were attacking the outpost, did they have a red symbol on their chests?"

Syaoran looked up in surprise. "They did! How did you know?"

Daisuke went serious as he answered. "They're the ones we're after. They've destroyed our worlds already, and countless others."

A rustling in the tree above them halted the conversation as the four stared up in apprehension. A hunched figure crouched above them, a long sword slung over a broad pair of shoulders. Syaoran relaxed at the sight of the man though. "Kurogane-san!" he called out softly.

The man jumped down with a 'humph,' landing softly next to the teens. "I take it you saw?" he stated, red eyes looking down the road. He was dressed like a traditional ninja, including mostly black attire under his armor.

All business, Syaoran nodded. "Mokona," he called, walking next to the older man. "Do you sense any feathers here?"

To the surprise of Daisuke and the others, a white fluffy creature bounced out of Kurogane's cloak! In Daisuke's mind, Dark warily inspected the creature before hissing, 'Careful, that thing is a magical construct. A rather intricate one, but still magic.'

Unaware of the warning that passed between the red head, Mokona hummed before shaking its' head. "Mokona's not sure. There may be one, but it's hard to tell," it said in a sad tone.

"Whoa!" Gourry said in surprise. He leaned in closer to the creature, finger extended to poke it. "What is it?" he asked softly.

At once, Daisuke grabbed the warrior's hand, pulling it away from the white creature. Oblivious, the thing grinned as it bounced up. "Mokona is Mokona!" it said with a chirp.

"If the introductions are over, can we think of a plan?" Duzell growled, stalking past the others.

"It's obvious!" Daisuke exclaimed as he released Gourry's wrist. "We're gonna help these guys out!" he declared. Syaoran whispered his name, surprised that the teen was willing to help him after he'd been so rude.

Duzell though, had other ideas. "Daisuke, why should we follow these people?" he asked in a hissing whisper as Gourry introduced himself to Kurogane.

Daisuke waved his worries aside. "I know what I'm doing Duzell, don't worry! I'm a thief, remember?" He waved his hand in the direction that the Samurai had gone. "I'll just sneak in, set them loose, and sneak them out."

Duzell thought for a few seconds, then nodded to the young man. "Alright. I have a feeling you wouldn't listen to me anyway," he muttered.

…………………………

Half an hour later found them outside of a large compound. The main part of the village was fenced off from the forest by a wooden wall. A few samurai were patrolling the outside of the wall, but they couldn't see what was going on inside the village. With a grin, Daisuke grabbed Syaoran by the wrist in order to pull him after him before turning to the others. "Wait for us here, we'll be back soon."

Before they could say anything, Daisuke raced forward, Syaoran barely keeping on his feet as he stumbled after the smaller teen. Crouched low, Daisuke led the teen around the barricade to a lower point. Grinning, he whispered to Wiz, who was perched on his shoulder, and tightened his grip on Syaoran's wrist as the rabbit transformed into his wings. With a small grunt, he jumped into the air, giving his familiar the chance he needed to get them into the air, Syaoran dangling below him. Swiftly, the trio cleared the wall, unnoticed by the guards in the darkness.

The teens landed in an alley right inside the wall, Syaoran rubbing his wrists in pain as Wiz changed back into his rabbit-form. The brown-haired teen was obviously curious about Wiz, but he stayed quiet as he and Daisuke snuck out of the alley into the main street.

They were surrounded by wooden, Japanese buildings, torches in front of the steps lighting the street. Spears and bows leaned against the wall of one house, but no one was in sight. Carefully, the two crept down the dirt path, heading towards a clearing in the middle of the village.

As they came up on a large crowd of men dressed in armor, Daisuke cocked his head to the side in curiously at the sight of the warriors in front of him. They looked like the old depictions of Samurai, and the long man figured that he could use this to his advantage. It was known that demons were common during the time of the time of the Samurai in his world, and he was hoping that it was the same in this one.

Even as the young man was thinking up a plan, a man in the middle of the circle imperiously gestured to some of the men behind him. On his head was a helm with a pair of antlers sticking out of the forehead, and he had a long sword at his hip. "Bring forth the prisoners!" he barked.

Next to the young thief, Syaoran gasped as the girl with emerald eyes and the tall blond were shoved forward, their hands bound behind them. The girl was obviously terrified, and the thin man next to her had a grim set to his face. "Sakura-hime!" Syaoran gasped as he moved to rescue her.

Daisuke placed a hand on the teen's shoulder to stop him. "Wait Syaoran, you won't do any good if you charge in like that!" he muttered. Looking around, he pointed at one of the huts next to them. "Climb, we need a better view than here," he ordered lowly as he started up the side of the structure.

Below them, the Samurai in charge stood over the pair as he started to bark at them. "You both have been charged with the destruction of five outposts, and one supply base over the past moon cycle. We know it was you, we caught you at the south-western post earlier today. Tell us, who sent you?"

Fai, the blond in the white and blue, looked up at the man, a glint in his crystal eyes. "Mokona sent us!" he chirped with a straight face.

Behind him, one of the men bashed his sword into the back of Fai's skull, growling angrily. "There is no Lord with that name! Stop being stupid, and answer Takeda-sama!"

Next to the blond, Sakura gasped as Fai lurched forward, a lump forming on his head. "We're telling you the truth! We didn't destroy your base!" she cried, throwing herself over the blond as best as she could, trying to protect him.

Takeda sneered as he leaned in closer to the girl, grabbing her chin in order to force her to look up at him. "Is that so? Then tell me, who did? Which of the Lords is trying to disable me?" he asked in an evil voice.

Daisuke took this as his cue to step in. He stood on the roof of the hut as Wiz transformed into the wings again. "They did not attack you, Takeda-sama," he bellowed, lowering his voice as much as he could, and making the sama into a sneer. Wiz stretched out as he allowed Dark to start and take over, knowing that the spirit would be able to get both prisoners out easier than he could. "I was the one who attacked you!" he yelled, slipping into Dark's voice as he did so. Next to him, Syaoran's eyes went big as the teen morphed into Dark's body, but managed to remain calm, up until the spirit launched himself at the Samurai below, scattering them as he landed next to the two prisoners.

Dark grinned as the warriors scattered around him, baring his teeth at Takeda. 'You were right Daisuke, they are as superstitious as the Samurai of our history!' he thought as he picked Sakura up in his arms, Fai draped over a broad shoulder. "If you wish to see the next sunrise, then leave us be, and stay out of my forest!" he growled before launching himself heavily into the air.

"Syaoran, let's go!" he called as he soared over the hut, heading for the wall. Nodding, Syaoran raced after the thief, leaping from roof to roof as he followed Dark. With a grunt, he jumped up onto and then over the wall onto the ground, rolling to his feet. Above him, Dark circled as he came in to land, groaning slightly as he landed heavily.

In his arms, Sakura called out to Syaoran happily. "Syaoran-kun!" she chirped as Dark helped her stand up, her arms still behind her back.

Happily, Syaoran hugged the girl tightly, amazed that she wasn't hurt. At the side, Dark smirked as he helped Fai stand up, undoing the knots in the rope with the ease of long practice. "Aww, young love, ne?" he asked quietly as he threw the rope to the side.

Fai grinned loopily as he swayed on his feet. The blow to his head had apparently hurt him more than he'd thought. Before he could say anything, Duzell, Gourry, and Kurogane came out of the trees, the vampire having spotted them as they went over the wall again. Seeing the ninja, Fai grinned wider as he draped himself on him, chirping, "Kuro-pyan came to help me!"

The tall ninja was about to push the blond off of him when an arrow zipped past his arm. "Time to move!" he growled as he hefted the tall magician into a better grip. More arrows came down around them, and the others agreed as they retreated into the forest.

……………………..

A little while later found them deep in the forest, surrounded by the sounds of the local wildlife. The troop had stopped for the night, and Kurogane was leaning against a tree, Fai draped across his lap. The blond had lost consciousness during the march into the forest, and was currently sleeping peacefully. Sakura was leaning against Syaoran, who had an arm wrapped around her shoulders. Across from them, Dark was perched on a tree limb, leg swinging lazily above Gourry's head. Duzell was sitting next to the warrior, tired after using his magic to heal part of Fai's concussion. His magic wasn't geared towards healing, so the spell had taken a lot of concentration on his part.

"So," Kurogane started. "What are you?" he growled in Dark's direction. "And I'm talking to both of you other there, you and the pale one. Why can't I sense your energy like I can Gourry's?"

Dark grinned from his perch, gently stroking Wiz in his arms. "I'm a spirit who lives in Daisuke's blood," he simplified. He nudged Duzell with a foot. "Tall and colorless here can tell you what he is," he joked. Mentally, Daisuke berated the thief. 'Dark, don't tease them too much, they're our allies, remember?'

Duzell growled, but rolled his eyes as he turned towards the group, Syaoran and Sakura listening intently as well. While he didn't trust Syaoran like Daisuke did, he still trusted the thief's judgement. The boy may not be normal, but he was acting like a normal human. 'Maybe he developed a heart of his own,' he thought before speaking. "I am the Vampire King Duzell," he said in an important voice. At the curious look on Sakura's face, he sighed. "I drink the blood of others in order to survive and to strengthen my magic," he explained. He nodded towards Gourry, who had nodded off. "He's the normal one, outside of being an idiot."

"You're not from this world, are you?" Syaoran asked, a hard glint in his eyes. He had yet to forget about the incident in the Piffle World. Instinctively, Duzell stiffened a little.

Dark smirked as he looked down at the teen. "I doubt that you're from here either," he retorted. He nodded towards Kurogane and Fai. "The blond has more magical potential then I do, and Kuro-pyan," he teased, "may be a swordsman, but he doesn't act like the Samurai here." At a curious look from the red-eyed warrior, the spirit shrugged. "You act like you'd rather attack from the shadows, and you're dressed more practically, like a ninja," he explained. The thief shifted as he folded his arms over his broad chest. "But I doubt you're here because your worlds were destroyed like ours were. If that was the case, then you'd know what the Heartless are."

"You mentioned that before. Just what are those things?" Kurogane barked, a large hand resting on Fai's shoulder. Unknown to the ninja, Fai was smiling lightly as he dozed.

Duzell, Dark, and Daisuke scowled, mentally in Daisuke's case. Being the more knowledgeable of the group, Duzell was the one to answer. "Those creatures you fought are known as the Heartless. They're the remnants of those who have lose their hearts to the darkness." Lifting a hand, the undead whispered something in the tongue of his world. After a minute, a small figure appeared under his hand.

It was an illusion of a Heartless, the ones who were the most common. It's antennae twitched as it shuffled around, startling Syaoran and the others. "These creatures feed on the energy of the heart, of feelings and memories, which is why they commonly appear in more heavily populated areas. If you're not careful, they'll destroy your heart, and a new Heartless appears."

Syaoran and Sakura were mesmerized by Duzell's magic. Because of this, only Kurogane was able to notice the incoming attack. "Look out!" he barked as he rolled away, carrying Fai and Mokona with him. Used to trusting the ninja's judgment, Syaoran did the same, Sakura in his arms. Seeing them, Dark and Duzell followed suit, Dark pulling Gourry out of the way. Seconds later, a troupe of Samurai came bursting through the trees, swords drawn and battle ready.

Dark grinned as he summoned the Keyblade to his hand, Wiz clinging to the back of his neck. "Finally, some action!" he crowed, ignoring Daisuke's pleas not to fight. Awake, Gourry shook his head to clear the fog from his mind, drawing his own sword, and Duzell was chanting under his breath, readying his spells. Syaoran and Kurogane were readying their blades as well, Fai and Sakura well out of the way.

With a crash, the two groups came together, Kurogane and Gourry leading the fight. Behind them, Syaoran and Dark were fighting together, protecting each other's back. With a cry, Duzell launched a fireball spell at the Samurai, forcing them to back away.

Dark was only faintly aware of a familiar presence as he danced amongst the warriors, breaking arms, parrying blows, knocking heads together. It wasn't until some of the Samurai screamed that he noticed a third party had joined the fight. The Heartless were attacking the other warriors. The spirit didn't even stop to think as he charged past his human opponents and into the Heartless, slashing them frantically as he worked to get them away from the humans. Seeing him, Duzell and Gourry joined in, the vampire throwing another fireball as the blond started hacking his way towards Dark. After a second, the rest of the fighters joined in.

"See Takeda-sama," Dark panted as he was joined by the human leader. "We weren't the ones, attacking you. THESE are, the true culprits!" he exclaimed as he sliced off the head of a Heartless. As the numbers trickled off, Dark was able to notice that they'd been led towards a small waterfall. With a sigh, the spirit finished off the last of the Heartless before resting his sword.

He'd relaxed too soon. A low rumbling started up, and the fighters staggered as they worked to stay on their feet. The Samurai were muttering in worry, but Dark and his friends recognized this feeling.

A low whooshing sound came to their ears. It grew louder until the Samurai started to back away, some edging for the trees again. In a burst of flame, a black creature appeared over the trees! It was large and shaped like a bird, but with a long neck and cruel talons. At the sight of it, Takeda called a retreat, and the Samurai raced away, thinking it was a demon. They were close; the bird had the Heartless symbol on it's breast.

At the sight of the creature, Mokona chirped in Kurogane's cloak. "Mokona senses a feather!" it exclaimed to the group, pointing at the large Heartless.

"That thing has a feather?" Syaoran exclaimed as he dodged away from it's talons.

"Doesn't matter what it is, it's going down!" Dark called as he charged the bird, Keyblade at the ready. Before he could land a hit, the bird spat a ball of fire at the thief!

Dark yelped as he dodged out of the way, landing on his rear as he twisted. With a roll, he was back on his feet, and yelled as he struck at the Heartless, hitting it in the wing. He was thrown to the side for his efforts, and the spirit groaned as he forced himself up: he'd hit a tree.

Seeing Dark's failed attempt, Syaoran and Kurogane charged the bird on opposite sides, Gourry charging the head. Confused, the Heartless didn't know which target to go after, until Gourry managed to slash it in the neck. Angry, the Heartless readied to spit another fireball at the blond, only to be interrupted by Duzell.

"Alu!" the vampire finished before waving his arm towards the creature. A torrent of water arched towards the bird, hissing as it hit it's sides and head. Angrily, the bird hissed at the vampire, staggering away as Syaoran and Kurogane continued to attack it's sides.

Back on his feet, Dark yelled towards Duzell. "Do that again! Aim for the head!" he advised at he charged again, going in low to attack the neck. Having already started the chant for the water spell again, Duzell quickly threw another wave at the Heartless. Roaring, the bird tried to dodge away, lifting it's head to avoid the spray.

That was a mistake. With a bellow, Dark slashed into the bird's neck, affectively severing most of it's head from the rest of it's body. With a final defiant roar, the Heartless collapsed, it's body dissolving in multiple sparkles of light. In it's place was a small, fiery red stone with a small rune engraved into it, and a small white feather.

Panting, Dark leaned against the Keyblade as he picked up the items. "What are these?" he wondered.

Syaoran was the first to recover as he walked up to the thief. "The feather belongs to Sakura-hime," he intoned. He sounded calm, but his body language was screaming that he was ready to fight if need be.

Dark grinned. "Who am I then, to refuse to return something that belongs to a lady?" he asked as he passed the teen the feather.

"Syaoran-kun!" At the sound of the small voice, everyone turned to see Sakura racing up the clearing, Fai right behind her. Grinning, Dark backed away as Syaoran gave her the feather, which melted into her chest. With a sigh, the girl's eyes rolled up into the back of her head and she fainted, only to be caught by Syaoran's waiting arms.

Turning, Dark marched over to the river, determined to wash his face. The soot from the Heartless's fire attack was starting to itch. Leaning over the water, his eyes suddenly caught sight of a particular shape behind the waterfall. He walked up to get a closer look, and smirked. There was a keyhole shape behind the sheet of water.

This time, the spirit took his time to inspect it, memorizing the feel of the latent magic around it. He nodded after a minute, confident that he'd be able to recognize that magic again later if need be. Raising the Keyblade, he pointed it at the waterfall. At once, light collected at the tip of the strangely-shaped weapon, shooting out to connect with the keyhole. The light increased as it hit, and a soft click could be heard before everything faded again.

Finished, the spirit turned around to address the group, only to practically run into Fai, who was standing right behind him. "That was an interesting type of magic," the blond said quietly.

"Thanks," Dark said, equally quiet. Remembering the stone in his hand, he showed it to the mage. "Do you know what this thing is?" he asked.

The blond took it with delicate fingers, inspecting it for a moment. "I believe this is a summoning stone," he finally said.

"Summoning? For what?" Dark asked, curious. In his mind, Daisuke was equally curious.

Fai shrugged as he gave the stone back to the thief. "I don't know, it's different for every summon. All you need to do though, is concentrate on calling it out, and it should come to help you." he advised.

"Oi! Get over here, we're leaving!" Kurogane barked, gesturing for Fai.

The blond grinned as he ambled over to the others. "Yes yes, Kuro-wuf!" he called. Growling, the ninja made to smack the mage over the head, but Fai just dodged him nimbly.

Syaoran looked over at Dark as Mokona sprouted wings, the alchemy circle forming under their feet. "Daisuke, Dark, I hope we're able to meet again!" he called.

Dark grinned as he nodded. "You can count on it Syaoran!" he assured as the group of four were sucked into Mokona's mouth. With a smile, the spirit relaxed his hold on Daisuke's body, allowing the boy to come back into control.

Turning, the three started to head back towards the ship-

-never noticing the small Heartless that jumped in after Mokona.

………………………………

"Well, that was a waste!" barked the skort-wearing man, watching the mirror in disgust. "They didn't lose a person or anything!" he whined, purple eyes glowing angrily.

"Quit your whining Homunculi," the cloaked man snapped, gnarled hand gripping the arm of his seat. "If you do not wish to add to the conversation, then do not open your mouth!"

"Personally, I'm more worried about the summon," spoke the man with the mask. "That was one of our more balanced creatures we've used, it could help them immensely."

The tallest amongst them snorted, pale fingers pushing hair away from his eyes. "If they can figure how to use it," he corrected.

"Either way though, we have what we want," sneered the old man, his long coat brushing against his legs as he turned to look at something behind the man in the traditional hakama and haori.

Said man laughed lowly. "Kukukukuku, yes, at least we have her, the fourth of the girls we need," he agreed, looking at the person behind him. There, sleeping soundly still, was Sakura, unaware of the Hell that awaited her upon awakening.

Kyaaa!! I'm evil aren't I, leaving poor Sakura in their clutches! (In their clutches! In their clutches!)

Anyway, review please. The more you do, the sooner I'm update. Wishing luck to all those who have finals!

Later!