"It's been awhile. You don't look so good: you have burns all over you and you're shaking like a leaf. Jeez, what happened to you?"

"A-Axel…"

"Yeah, you've already said my name. Jeez, don't wear it out, 'kay? So, what happened?"

"N-none of your business…" Her voice was shaking just as much as her body. She fought for the self-control not to keep screaming, not to do anything reckless.

"You're completely terrified. Of what, I wonder? Heh, Saix didn't do anything to you, did he?"

Saiyoku wasn't in the mood to listen to him or his jokes. She grabbed the chakram and pulled it to the side; there was nowhere else to throw it but over the side of the tower. Axel hung on, jamming his other chakram into the ground beside her neck, catching himself and digging the other chakram on the other side of her exposed throat. He had her pinned: a terrified, injured girl who barely had the strength to speak.

"You just never learn, Saiyoku."

"She doesn't have to."

Axel spun around to see Riku leaning against the wall, his arms folded against his chest. The pyro grabbed the chakrams from Saiyoku's neck and smiled, spinning them in his hands, "So, looks like she wasn't alone like I thought. You'll prove to be a much more exciting fight than her."

"Leave Saiyoku alone, Nobody." The way he spoke was like ice, even chilling Saiyoku to the bone. Axel grimaced, "I don't need you to remind me what I am."

Riku drew his Keyblade, but kept it to his side, looking at Axel dangerously; Saiyoku couldn't help but remember that it was her fault his expression was wracked with pain and sorrow. She got to her knees and bowed her head, "R-Riku… I—"

"—Save it." He interjected, his voice was harsh to her ears, and she didn't dare look at him now.

"But—"

"Shut up, Saiyoku." This time, he was calm; it was a scary calm, the one that tells your instincts that there was something much more menacing behind those words that you think. It sent a flurry of questions to Saiyoku's broken mind: was he angry? sad? was he protecting her? or was it just her own false impression that made her think that he was doing this for her… when it was instead his own anger at the Organization and the incentive to destroy any of them that came near?

Constant was the rush of emotions that collided inside and embraced her; a fear of leaving this life… a pure terror that rose within her at the slightest mention of hearts. Yes, this was the new presence of mind for Saiyoku, one she hoped to overcome. Lost intuitions that had long since buried themselves within the human conscience were released; the newest instinct that swelled inside her entire being was of pure consequence from the knowledge of her fate; it was something she'd never experienced, something she had never needed before, but it came to her now: the need for survival. As petty as it sounds, this instinct seemed appropriate to her. She didn't want to die; after all, who in their right mind would?

The stare down between the two entities of Darkness continued, not a single movement was seen, nor was a word spoken amongst them. Weapons in hand, they watched each other, cold eyes staring deep into the others, as if one could see the very soul of the enemy. It was as if they had become statues, waiting for the other to make a move—an excuse to attack and kill. Time itself seemed to slow, leaving the two in an unrelenting frozen standstill.

Eventually, Riku released his Keyblade, the weapon vanishing into a smoky Darkness. He sighed a pained sigh and glanced at Saiyoku, saying, "I won't fight you, Axel."

"What?"

"You heard me, Nobody. I said I won't fight you," he sauntered right past him, as if he was still the stone statue, and he held out his hand to Saiyoku—almost reluctantly, "C'mon. Let's go." His voice returned to the harshness of before, the calm evaporating and bringing the storm that had been held back.

"Okay…" She muttered, taking his hand and pulling herself to her feet, still not looking at him. Axel growled and spun his chakrams threateningly, "Don't you walk away from me!"

"I just did," Riku said darkly, glancing back at him slowly, "Or do you feel like going back to where you came from?"

"Tch, don't play games with me! Coward!"

Saiyoku watched as this accusation struck a chord of anger within Riku, but he seemed to keep it under control. He pushed Saiyoku to the stairs and stopped at the top, turning around swiftly and hitting an unsuspecting Axel with a Dark Aura, yelling out to him as he fell off the tower, "That's for calling me a coward!"

He slid past Saiyoku and beckoned her to come with him. She obeyed like a lifeless puppet, following him silently and slowly. Only once did he ask her to speed up as he led her back to the Mansion and down into the basement. Once the door shut behind them, Riku grabbed her arm roughly and pinned her to the wall; she made no movement, no refusal.

"Dang it, Saiyoku! What happened in that dream!?"

"I told you before. I can't tell you." She was quiet, her voice still quivering like her body; but Riku wouldn't take that as an answer.

"You can't tell me. You can't tell me. IS THAT ALL YOU HAVE TO SAY? WHY? WHY CAN'T YOU TELL ME!? Don't you want to tell anybody what is bothering you so badly? Enough to nearly send you over the edge and break you!?" He released her and turned around, and in putting his hand on his forehead, he quickly turned back around and slapped her sharply across her face.

She stood there, stunned. No thoughts passed through her mind; eye contact was not an issue anymore. She straightened herself and stared him dead in the eye, her skin flushing a deep red where his hand had made contact.

"Why… the heck… did you do that?" Her voice forgot its weariness and quietness, and became loud and harsh. Her eyes were no longer dull but full of life, dancing in the dim blue lights that filled the room; her whole being seemed to be full of life again in such a short time.

"What else was I supposed to do? You were a complete zombie! You had no life in you anymore! You didn't care about anything! You acted as if you just wanted to die, right then and there."

Saiyoku froze, grabbed the shoulder of his coat, and pulled him close, her teeth gritted tight, "Now, explain to me… who in their right mind would want to die? Why would anyone choose that?"

"I don't know… maybe if their life was terrible, if they thought their life had no meaning and there was no point to living."

"Now what about a person who believes their life is great just the way it is. What if they're happy and they don't want to die, but they have to… not for their sake, but for others' sakes. Why do you think they would agree to that?"

"They would agree because that's the right thing to do."

"Why is it the right thing to do?"

"Because if they didn't give their life up for others, then they were just being selfish and people wouldn't respect them anymore. Now, if they gave up their life, then they would be acting selflessly, which I personally believe we should all strive to do."

"But what makes it right?"

"The fact that you are acting for others."

"But what's the point if you don't know them? Why should you give up your life for strangers?"

"Why should anyone give up their life in the first place? Come on, enough questions about death already."

Saiyoku released him and stared at the ground, "Riku… death is something that is much more real than we make out to believe. It seems like something that should happen when we grow old and decrepit, and we can't do anything anymore. But… how is it fair for someone to die when they are so young?"

"Does this have to do with your dream?"

"Answer me this one last question: what would you choose? Giving up your life for others, or living?"

Riku stayed silent for awhile, thinking hard about the choice. Minutes passed, but then he sighed, "I'd give my life up for others. But you know… I have so much to atone for, so many lives I have destroyed with my stupid mistakes, that I really don't think it matters really. I think I'd finally atone for all my sins by doing that."

"So am I in the wrong if I said that I would rather live than die for others?"

"It's more of a matter of morals, Saiyoku. Would you be okay if you knew others were going die, but you selfishly chose to live. In my opinion, if you made that choice, it's just like me helping Ansem destroy the worlds. You'd have to atone for it in the end. I mean, think about all the lives you're ruining. Is one life really worth all those that died because of your selfish actions? Once again, does this have to do with your dream?"

"Yes…"

"How? Did Terra, Ventus, or Aqua have to make this choice?"

"No, but I have one more question."

"What?"

"Is it okay to be terrified of dying for others? If it's really better to do that, then why would it be so horrifying?"

"Of course it's okay to be afraid of dying, especially if it's going to be painful."

Saiyoku took a deep breath, breathing out slowly, "Riku… I'm the one who has to make that choice. It's a long story, but if you want to hear it—"

"—Y-you? But—!"

"—Do you want to hear the story or not? Yes or no?"

"Yes," he said, staggering back and falling to the floor against the wall adjacent to the beam machine. She explained everything, every little detail that she had heard and understood.

"So… you're going to die?" He asked, his voice quivering like hers.

"Yes Riku, I'm going to die now. I suppose… I've made my decision. I will die. All those innocent people are trapped inside of me and I need to free them."

"But… you can't die, not you!"

"I have to Riku!"

"No you don't!" He jumped up and grabbed her hands, staring into her pale brown eyes, "You can't! You can't because I… I…"