It was as though I was flying in space. So many shades of blue, white, silver, and black surrounded me in streams of light and stars that littered the sky. The only sound that could be heard was the flap of my wings every so often when I lost altitude and tried to avoid space-like debris. In the distance, I could see what appeared as other worlds, but a range of buildings and forests were on top of them.

These must be the worlds Ansem the Wise was referring to, I thought to myself. There were so many, I had lost count at twelve, but that was mostly because I had other things on my mind; more specifically, my family.

If they were captured by the Heartless, there was no telling what would happen to them. My sister was only nine and could be very easily scared. My youngest little brother, much like my sister, was not the bravest of thirteen-year-olds. My other younger brother, only a year behind me in age, could be tough as nails, but it had occurred more than once that when he didn't feel in control of what was happening around him, he had a hard time controlling his anger and things got ugly. I'm talking about a 5' 10" sixteen year old boy who's the head linebacker on his football team; now that I thought about it, I seemed to feel this sort of aura building up in him, even when I wasn't aware of my powers at the time. My parents were another thing, though. My dad was a Marine, just like his dad, so if anything went wrong, I knew he would protect the others, and my mom was a nurse so if any of them got hurt she would know what to do. However, there was the possibility that they had been separated. If that was the case, I probably had to travel to several worlds before I would find them all. But then what? They didn't have a Keyblade like me and more than likely couldn't travel with me to other worlds.

I lost my breath for a moment when my wings made a sudden incline just before a large meteorite was to crush me. I shook my head to clear it once I was out of danger. It was strange, my wings somehow knowing when I was in danger and pulled me out of it. But you didn't see me complaining.

The thoughts of my family were pushed aside when I came upon a world with a beautiful castle and garden surrounding it. That must be Radiant Garden, and where I'll find Leon. My speed increased as I headed towards my destination.

XXXXX

I had no time to react as I came in too fast and made a very ungraceful landing, tripping over my own feet and rolling a few yards, nearly head butting into a wall. I got up and dusted myself off, then turned to look at my wings; they were a little dirty but otherwise unharmed. I sighed in relief and forced them away. As if by reaction, my dress disappeared and I was once again in my old clothes. I simply accepted that and looked at my surroundings.

I immediately understood why that place was called Radiant Garden; I was standing in a courtyard that was bordered by beautiful garden patches. Daisies, tulips, lilies, and several other flowers I recognized were scattered and in every color of the rainbow. There were also several trees and the greenest grass I had ever seen. The sky was clear and shining with birds chirping happily.

It seemed so much like paradise that maybe I was dead.

But the shadows crawling towards me changed that.

I took a defensive stance and my Keyblade suddenly appeared in my right hand, confirming my thoughts. So these are the Heartless. Not the most charming looking individuals.

They kinda reminded me of ants, but only had two legs that they barely stood on and tiny arms with glinting claws. Two antennas were atop their circular heads and their perfectly round, yellow eyes studied me.

I looked down at my necklace and saw that the white wing had slightly become black. These Heartless must be the cause, I thought to myself, but couldn't help but tremble. I'd never once been in a fight. I'd also never held a sword made of foam before, let alone a real one, and I certainly didn't know how to use one. Then again, the Keyblade was different; it wasn't sharp going along one edge or heavy and bulky. With this in mind, I put my other hand on the hilt, raised it straight above my head, and slashed down like a samurai.

Black and white feathers exploded and created a small tornado. The Heartless were just as intrigued as I was, watching the feathers perform a sort of intricate dance, reminding me that my Keyblade contained both the power of Light and Darkness. I was surprised, however, when one Heartless got too close to the tornado and was thrown back several feet.

The other Heartless took this as a threat and attacked.

I closed my eyes tight and brought the Keyblade down once more, feeling it collide with one of the creatures. My eyes flew open in surprise just as the Heartless that had been hit disappeared in a puff of black smoke.

No blood. Weird, I thought. With more confidence, I went on the offensive, hacking at my opponents over the head and to the side. I quickly realized that my attacks were more effective when I got behind them and hit their backs. They weren't very fast. but more than once they would fuse with the ground and become actual shadows, making it impossible for me to touch them.

Still, I thought I was making progress. That is, until reinforcements arrived and I began to tire. My swings got slower and sloppy, my legs and arms became heavy, and sweat drenched my body. I kept fighting, though, waiting for the chance to escape.

Before I could react, a Heartless detached itself from the ground behind me and raked its claw along my right leg. I cried out in pain and drove my Keyblade into the stone of the courtyard as I fell to one knee. Shivers ran up my spine as I felt a warm liquid trickle down my leg and drip to the ground.

The sight of me down and on my last legs must have driven the Heartless beyond insanity, for they all leaped on top of me.

I tried to keep upright and throw them off my back, but the weight soon became too much and I completely crumbled to the ground. The Heartless blocked out the light of the sun, cutting off my vision. I felt my Keyblade break from my grip and disappear in a spark of light. The weight of the shadowy creatures was driving the breath out of my lungs and my body was starting to become numb.

"Help," I cried out, but it seemed no more than a squeak.

Not a few moments later I began to hear voices. At first I thought I was imagining things, but if it meant being saved, I wasn't going to jinx it.

The voices seemed distant and I could only make out a few worlds.

"Le-… Heartless…someone… trouble."

"Get… here.. beat it."

Just before I lost consciousness, the weight on my back completely disappeared, the sudden light hurting my eyes. I could no longer hear but saw someone kneel in front of me. I lifted my head as far as I could, but could only make out the blurry face of what I'd guessed was a female. I saw her mouth move and another figure was quickly at her side, but I no longer could hold my head up and lowered it as my eyes closed and darkness took its hold.

"She was crazy to have taken on those Heartless."

"Maybe she didn't have the chance to escape."

"I'm not so sure; there were signs of a struggle and the courtyard looks like a mess."

"She must have put up quite a fight."

"But things don't add up; Why did those Heartless only go after her? Who is she? Where did she come from? And how was she able to fend off those Heartless for that long?"

"I guess we'll find out when she wakes up."

"Ifshe wakes up."

"What's that suppose to mean?"

"He does have a point. She took a good beating and her leg is in bad shape. The additional shock may keep her unconscious for quite some time."

"Then I guess all we can do is wait."

XXXXX

As I started to come to, a small moan escaped my throat.

"Oh, are you awake?"

I slowly opened my eyes to a world of blurry colors and shapes. After a few moments, my vision realigned and I realized I was in a small bedroom, laying on a simple twin-sized bed. I looked to my right and saw a girl not much older than me. She had long, wavy brown hair with a red bandana tied in the back and wore a red and white blouse and a long pink skirt. She had soft eyes and a warm smile.

"How do you feel?" She asked.

"A little sore but otherwise alright." I sat up and further studied my surrounding before turning back and adding, "Where am I?"

"You're at me and my friends' home, so you're safe from those creatures," she replied. "I'm Aerith, by the way."

I nodded my head. "I'm Hikari Kurai."

Aerith smiled. "That's a very unique name. Where are you from?"

I looked down at the question. "You probably wouldn't believe me if I told you."

"Wanna bet?"

Aerith and I both turned towards the new voice and saw a boy that was most likely the same age as Aerith.

He had brown hair and a sharp face with a scar running across it. He wore a short-sleeved black jacket that's collar was rimmed with fake white fur and the symbol of a lion in blood red on his left shoulder over a faded white shirt, black pants that were adorned with buckles and criss-crossing red and black belts, and black gloves.

"I thought you were on patrol, Leon," Aerith said with a teasing smile.

At the sound of that name, a flicker of hope lit in my heart. "You're Leon?"

The boy looked straight at me with a neutral look on his face. "Yeah, why do you ask?"

His attitude was something I could have dealt without I did my best to contain my irritation. "I was sent here to find you," I simply stated.

"By who?" Leon questioned.

"A man by the name Ansem the Wise," I answered.

Leon's eyes grew slightly wide with shock and I heard Aerith gasp.

"Is something wrong?" Their silence was making me nervous.

After what seemed seasons later, Leon spoke up. "You couldn't have met Ansem the Wise."

I clenched my hands into fists. "And why not?" I retorted.

"Because." I turned to Aerith and saw she was looking down with a sad face. "Ansem the Wise… died nearly a year ago."