"Did you ever think of life before the light?"

"Never. Why?"

"Can't you imagine it? The endless miles of darkness, undisturbed, indistinguishable from everything around it? A warm, tight blanket around creation?"

"Sounds scary."

"No, it's…just…unending-"

Silence. Just silence. The whizzing, screaming, deafening kind of silence. That's what his ears could hear as he awoke in a daze and confused state. Then came the signs of life. Of screaming and shouting. The yelps and fearful screeching of those who are too afraid to fight. The figure could barely hear the voices through the piercing dark.

"What about the keyhole?"

"Let's just get out of here!"

The voices peaked the new soul's interest, as he turned to the direction of the noise. He could feel the cool stone beneath him, hear the sound of boots stomping against pavement, and the sound of webbed feet in a sprint, and smell the copper and an ethereal scent. The silence came back, the darkness still was overwhelming. That's when he heard it. A voice, a singular voice.

"You lazy bum…get up!"

The voice echoed in his skull, and he listened to it. Steadily his eyes opened, transfixed to the ceiling above him. That's when he could feel the tight compression in his chest and in his back. Slowly he rose, sitting up in his position as he felt the pressure in his chest and in his stomach. He dry heaved once, then twice. In the third and final one, he felt it. A course of air bellowed into his chest and out without a shudder. A breath. His first breath.

He scrambled up onto his feet and stared at the room around him, continuing his deep breathing.

The room was full of steam pipes and metal, all of them interconnecting and weaving into this symbol against the wall. Around him was once an enclosed space with old cobblestone revealing this destroyed and crumbling center piece. He felt a looming energy overhead, the low faint buzzing of machinery, and the steady beat that matched his internal marching in his chest. He turned his head to the source, and found a strange shape, with ever changing incandescent colors. The shape felt familiar, as he stared. It looked like a…

A…A...A...

"A heart." The voice erupted out of the silence, as he turned around to face the speaker. Though he did not appear at first, ever so slowly a bleeding door of ever flowing blackness was conceived. What marched out was a man, with tan skin and silver hair, that was hiked into there points along his hairline. Flowing hair that ended between his shoulder blades. His coat of leather was weather black with golden trim, underneath a white vest and slacks. Upon his feet were knee high boots, and upon his chest was the very 'heart' symbol he spoke over. The man's raging flame colored eyes focused on the newly born soul, as he crossed his arms and began to speak again. He seemed confused more than upset, as he took a step forward. "What are you…"
"I don't know…" The new soul muttered, as he glanced up at the tan figure. The tan figure squinted his eyes as he looked upon the new soul. What struck him was…curiosity. This being's aura read similar to that of the Heartless he commanded. Yet…the being appeared humanoid. His silver hair hung loose on his head, swept back due to its weight. The olive skin of the new soul matched his own tone, and even his eyes. This new being's eyes were orange, a dark fiery orange. Just like his own. The new soul let out a sigh, his hands resting on his skull. "What am I?"
"A heart-" The tan figure took a step forward, this step coming to the deafening sound of silence. The step echoed for what felt like eternity. The man's eyes went wide as the new soul began to scream as images flooded his memory. Instances of death, anger, horror and pain. The slashing of a weapon into a colleague's chest, the hand pressing against the skull of a child as green energy consumed their being, the images of a woman in a suit of armor crying as she struck the figure. All these memories seemed to open a mental floodgate and overtake the new soul, who desperately wanted the world to become silent once again.

"Stop! Stop! Stop!" He roared as he clapped his hands over his ears and screamed. The tan figure also began to scream as he took steps back and looked desperately at the boy. As the two pairs of eyes met, there was this internal shift in the equilibrium of nature. This disruption in the natural order. The tanned man squinted his eyes as he stared at this disruptor.

"What are you!?" The man asked, as he raised his fist and summoned a being from the ether. The boy quickly backpedaled, as the dark creature took form and its arms darted to him. Their claws inches from him as the boy crawled away. The boy raised his own arms to defend himself, shades of black overwhelming him as he felt consumed by the tide of a dark wave. The man stared daggers at the boy, up until the darkness took his sight once again…Then light broke.

And out of that darkness, came a ferocious and deadly ball of gloomy flame. The speed and distance of the flame striking the body of the dark creature, which returned behind its master's frame. The tan man squinted his eyes, before growling at the new soul.
"I don't have time for this." The tan man roared, before he called a bleeding door of ever flowing blackness and walked inside. "Don't expect to see me again…"

Soon after, he was disappearing among the dark. The new soul rested against the floor, laying his head back and letting out a shuddering breath. He looked ahead of him, over the edge of the platform and into the hall. Along the carpeted floor, there were six crystal structures, three on each side of the row. This figure of darkness scurried across the floor, charging through the doors. The new soul rolled onto his stomach, getting up onto his hands and knees.

"Hey, wait!" He shouted, getting onto his feet and jumping off the structure and onto the floor. He walks down the carpeted hall and into the next room. "Wait up!"

The darkness broke into an almost blinding light, as the new soul heard the zipping and shifting of stone as these platforms along the tall tower entered a different corridor. The new soul leans against the wall, his heart beating hard inside his chest. His eyes shutting tight as he feels a pinging sensation in his chest.

"Tied to the darkness... Soon to be completely eclipsed." The voice's words struck true to the new soul…his shut eyes totally eclipsed by the darkness. His heart settles into a steady rhythm as he lets out a gentle sigh."The darkness in people's hearts—that's what attracts them."
"I…I can't…I don't know…anything…" The new soul muttered. "I don't know…anything…"
"There is so very much to learn. You understand so little." The soul presses his hands into his face, roaring in defiance as the voices get too loud. "And darkness was born in their hearts. The darkness spread, swallowing the light and many people's hearts…"

"I will understand. I will learn." The new soul let loose, his hands curling into fists. His eyes staring into the dark behind his eyelids as he could see this figure in a robe, staring back at him. The feeling of dread overwhelmed him. "The Darkness in my heart…will it spread?"

"A meaningless effort. One who knows nothing can understand nothing." The new soul holds his skull as he lets out a roar. And then…a new voice appears. It cuts through the dark, the muffling of the other voices ceases, and it's only their voice that remains. "What's... What's happening to me? Falling... falling... into darkness." That's when the new soul opens his eyes. He stares up into the ceiling, his heart thumping in his chest as he holds his hand to his heart. That falling and falling into darkness that voice described…it sounded so…familiar. It sounded so new. So recent. The new soul looks at his hand, seeing the creases and calluses on the inside of his hands. The new soul stared curiously as he closed his fist. Feeling it tight and shaking violently in his hand. Feeling the bones pop and struggle to not break under the pressure he put upon it.

"Am I…the Darkness?" The new soul squinted his eyes. "What-Who…am I?"
That's when a new voice spoke out. A silent voice. A soft voice.
"Kuro…your name is Kuro."