THIS IS THE SECOND UPDATE TODAY, SO IF YOU HAVEN'T, GO BACK AND READ THE PREVIOUS CHAPTER!

a/n: we finally find out what happened to demyx, axel and zexion now! yaaaay!

enjoy this chapter!

a-far-off-memory

"This place is so creepy," Demyx mumbled, nervously glancing around.

"More like disgusting," Zexion muttered, glaring at the thick dust that coated everything.

"More like creepy and disgusting," Axel corrected with a shudder.

They stopped at the door they'd been told was the door to the bathroom, and Demyx gently set Zexion down. He opened the door and limped inside, shutting it behind him.

He'd been in there for a moment before Axel's flashlight started to flicker. "Shit," he cursed, smacking it to no avail. Growling to himself, he tucked it into the pocket of his hoodie and pulled out his zippo, flicking it on.

Demyx was pretty much hyperventilating at his side, green eyes wide with fright. "I thought that all the batteries in the flashlights were new!" he exclaimed.

Axel shrugged. "Maybe it's the lightbulb itself. Calm down, Dem," he told the blond, laying a hand on his shoulder.

Taking a deep breath, Demyx nodded. "Yeah. It's the lightbulb. You're totally right. Nothing to freak out over." He chuckled nervously, rubbing the back of his neck.

A startled gasp was heard from behind the door, followed by nothing. Brow furrowed, Axel knocked. "Zex?" he called, straining his ears for a reply.

None came.

Demyx's eyes widened exponentially. "Zexy, answer me right now," he said, sounding slightly panicked.

When there was no answer again, Demyx grabbed Axel by the arms. "We need to go in there. Something's wrong!"

Nodding, Axel gently pushed him away and reached out to turn the handle. He pushed the door open and glanced around, gasping when his eyes landed on a tall obsidian oval.

"What the fuck is that?" Demyx demanded, paling with fright.

Axel stepped into the room, moving closer to inspect it. "It was in that folder of drawings...this is what Sora and Riku said they saw," he replied grimly, turning to look at Demyx.

"Well where the hell is Zexion?" When Axel simply looked at him, green eyes subdued, the blond leaned into the wall, legs shaking. "No. You're kidding. He isn't...he didn't go in there. We're not going in there."

Axel sighed. "Dem, where else would he be?"

Cautiously, Demyx stepped in to eye the oval suspiciously. "We don't even know where it goes..."

"Well Demyx, Zexion's in there. We have to go—" His sentence dropped off, his eyes widening as he caught sight of the tall figure behind Demyx. It was shrouded in darkness, but piercing golden eyes were clearly visible.

Slowly, Demyx turned. A startled gasp escaped him before he was roughly pushed into the dark swirling mass, disappearing immediately.

"Oh fuck," Axel muttered, eyes widening as the being's attention turned to him. He didn't have time to say anything else before he was grabbed and thrown into the portal, his zippo flying from his hand and landing with a thud.

"Where are we?" Roxas questioned, looking around the room they'd ended up in. It was small and dark, and their flashlights had stopped working. It was more than a little unsettling.

"I don't know, but I don't like this," replied Naminé, groping for both Riku's and Roxas' arms. Both jumped when she grabbed them, relaxing when they realized it was only her.

"Let's just not panic," Riku said calmly, taking charge. "We just need to find the door."

A cold chuckle froze all of them in their tracks. Slowly, light filled the room as candles flickered to life on their own.

"What. The. Fuck?" Roxas mumbled, looking around wildly.

"Back here, friends," a voice answered. It was male, and unfamiliar.

Slowly, they all turned. Standing behind them, smirking in amusement, was a young silver-haired man who looked to be about their age. His skin was bronze, his eyes a sickly gold, contrasting oddly with his light hair. He wore a simple black cloak with a hood that zippered up the middle, along with a pair of black boots.

"So nice of you all to come! My brothers and I haven't had so many visitors in a long time," he practically purred, smirk widening.

His protective instincts kicking in, Riku moved so that he stood in front of his two younger friends. "Who are you, and where are our friends?" he growled, aqua eyes deadly.

The man threw his head back and laughed. "They're all playing the game, of course. Just as you three are!" He flicked his hair back, golden eyes amused. "I am Xehanort, if you must know."

"What game?" Roxas demanded, clenching his fists.

"What do you even want with us?" Naminé questioned, glaring harshly.

"It's a most entertaining game—I'm sure you'll all like it," Xehanort told them, smirk widening. "You three are the luckiest—yet perhaps also the most unlucky. The fates of everyone in this house depends on the three of you, you see."

Riku's eyes narrowed. "How so?"

Xehanort chuckled. "You see, you all have some sort of connection to the others in the house. And so you three will determine whether they all live or die! Exciting, isn't it? All you have to do is find everyone before they die. If you make it back to the foyer before sunrise, you're all free to go. It's simple, really."

"That's sick!" Naminé exclaimed, eyes wide with disgust.

The amber-eyed man shrugged. "Call it what you want, but it's your reality now. You three are the safest in the house, yet also the ones who ear the biggest burden. You won't be touched until sunrise...but the others are fair game until then. I hope you've all said goodbye, just in case," he said maliciously, eyes glinting. "My brothers will take good care of them."

Roaring in anger, Riku lunged. He met thin air, however, as Xehanort disappeared into a corridor of darkness before he could reach him.

"You have four hours until sunrise! And finding them won't be easy..." Xehanort's voice cackled before falling silent.

It was silent for a moment before Riku swore and rushed over to the door. "We need to go. Now," he growled, throwing the door open hard enough that the doorknob crashed straight through the brittle wall.

Neither of the two blonds could argue with that. They followed him through the doorway and down the hall, beginning their search of the giant house.

They'd searched through nearly the entire floor when they heard a yell. All three of them halted in their movements, while a choked sound left Roxas as he recognized the owner.

"That was Axel," he choked out, blue eyes wild. "We need to find him, there's something wrong with him." His voice died off into a sob. Naminé immediately wrapped an arm around him, while Riku raked a hand through his long silver hair in frustration.

"Where did it even come from?" he questioned, aqua eyes darting around as his ears strained to hear any other sounds.

"I couldn't tell," Naminé replied quietly, sighing. "We just need to keep looking and hope for the best." She put her hand on Roxas' shoulders, looking deeply into his eyes. "Rox, you gotta pull it together. We'll find him," she said intensely, giving him a small shake

Roxas forced himself to take several calming breaths, frenzied tears subsiding into hiccups. Nodding, he reached down and took her hand, squeezing it tight.

They left the room they were currently in, moving to search a new one. It was empty of everything, save for some cobwebs and dead bugs.

As they were about to leave, Roxad felt himself become frozen in place. As much as he wanted to, he couldn't move—he couldn't even make a sound.

"Roxas?" Riku questioned, brow creasing in confusion.

That was all Roxas heard before everything went black.

a/n: oh noooo, what's wrong with roxas?

still looking for guesses as to who's going to die first! make sure you tell me in a review!

afom out~