The Unknown

A security camera was monitoring the computer in the basement of the castle. It moved to the left and spotted a man in a dark coat, standing at the entrance. It zoomed in on him just as he raised his hand and blue light and the camera's vision was filled with static…from being destroyed.

The man in the dark coat stood before the large computer and inserted a disk into it.

DTD Loading

He then typed in the requested password.

Another

He pressed the 'enter' key and six more dialogue boxes appeared, each of them requesting their own passwords which he typed in.

Ansem

Braig

Dilan

Aeleus

Ienzo

SYSTEM START

The man stepped back and watched as the disk emerged back out from the slot, took it and turned away from the computer, exiting the room. He came out into a large chamber and walked down two sets of stairs, coming to a stop at the bottom. In a flash of light, a passageway opened up and he walked down into the lower chamber with the passageway closing behind him upon entering. Once he was at the bottom of the ramp, it vanished in a flash of light and he continued walking down a long spiraling stair case.

Lining the walls and floors were tubes pulsing with purple light and a red glowing sphere in circle symbol at the very top.

As the man continued his trek to the bottom, a voice from the past echoed in his mind.

'Master Ansem…Regarding the experiment I presented the other day. With your permission, I'd like to proceed-'

'I forbid it! Forget this talk of doors and the heart of all worlds. That place must not be defiled!'

'But Master Ansem! I've been thinking…'

'Xehanort…Those thoughts are best left forgotten.'

At the bottom of the stairs, a pair of doors opened and led into a white hallway with a black square patterned floor with white lines. Along the walls were white doors, all of them sealed with electronic locks and chains. He walked past them and stopped at the doors at the end of the hall. These doors had black chains drawn on them and opened with a mere gesture of the man's hand,

The man entered a small chamber, colored grey and white with black chain outlines along the walls and floor that ended with a splintered, upside down heart. In the center of the room was a throne like chair that the man sat down on and watched as white light traveled along the chains lines and up to the symbols lining the walls.

His attention was set on the armor and key shaped sword lying on the other end of the chamber.

"It has been far too long…'Friend'."

Before he could say anything else, he was surprised by a bright light and from it came two voice crying out.

"Gah!"

"Agh!"

The man watched as two young women, one of them very familiar fell out of the portal on the other side with the pink haired girl wearing the same kind of coat as him landing on the blue haired woman who groaned as she tried to get up. The man remained still, simply watching as girl with pink and brown hair slowly got off of the blue haired woman and looked around where they had ended up. "What is this place?"

The woman slowly got up and looked ahead, her eyes widening when she saw a pile of discarded armor and a Keyblade… "My old armor and Keyblade."

The girl looked at the armor and Keyblade. "That belongs to you?"

"It was my original armor and Keyblade before I fell into the darkness." The blue haired woman stepped forward and knelt down in front of the armor, slowing reaching out and grasping the handle of Stormfall. "But what is it doing here?"

"I brought them here."

Both of them spun around, spotting the man in the dark coat, sitting on the throne like chair in the center of the small room.

"It's been far too long…My friend."

Neo was unsure of who the man wearing same kind as she was might be but she had a feeling he was bad news.

Aqua on the other hand immediately held her Keyblade in her hands, glaring darkly at the man. "That voice…Xehanort!"

The man said nothing, even as Aqua grasped her Keyblade and was ready to attack. Neo had no idea what was going on but she prepared herself for a fight all the same.

"I know that's you under that hood, Xehanort." Aqua said in angered voice. "What is this place? And where is Terra?!"

The man shot forward and before Aqua could react he seemingly passed through her, causing her to gasp as she staggered back and suddenly Aqua was no longer in the present but experiencing every memory that had led up to this point.

Leaving the Temple of Departure.

Searching for her friends.

Battling Vanitas and the Unversed.

Confronting Xehanort and Vanitas in the Keyblade Graveyard.

Defeating Vanitas and destroying the X-blade.

Placing Ven in the Chamber of Awakening.

Finding Terra who had become possessed.

Fighting him and saving him from falling into the Realm of Darkness.

Landing in the strange land where Drasil lived.

Meeting the four spirits: Jinn, Ambrosius, Nimue and Janus.

Meeting Ozma.

Fighting Sidorak.

Meeting Salem and stopping Surtr.

Arriving in Twilight Town where she thought she saw Ven.

Fighting the Foretellers.

Meeting the Master of Masters.

Fighting against those rulers with the magical weapons.

Ozma dying.

Fighting against Salem and her army as they tried to attack the Brother Gods.

Fighting alongside Artura and the Foretellers to defeat Surtr one final time.

Meeting Neo and the four Maidens who had lost their world.

Returning to the Realm of Darkness to save the worlds.

Reuniting with Mickey.

Rushing to Neo and meeting Salem again.

And now back here, reunited with her Keyblade.

Aqua fell back, her mind having gone numb as Neo rushed over to her, holding her up. "Aqua!"

Aqua blinked as she rubbed her head, her hand over her eyes as she let out a groan. Neo looked at the cloaked man whose back was turned against them. She didn't know why but she had a feeling even if she tried to attack from behind she would only end up getting herself killed.

This man…he was giving her an even worse feeling than even Salem!

Only it was not a feeling a pure evil.

More like…emptiness.

Like he was not good or evil but at the same time, a feeling of great power radiated from around him in such a manner that she felt she should run.

Aqua grunted as she managed to get back up and face the dark coated man. "You…You made me relive every memory leading up to this point. Why?"

The man slowly turned around. "…You surprise me this time."

Aqua narrowed her eyes as she held up Stormfall. "Xehanort..."

"How long has it been since I abandoned that name?" The man spoke, slowly raising both hands.

"…Terra?"

(Kingdom Hearts Soundtrack Disappeared)

The man shot his arms up above his head and both Neo and Aqua closed their eyes as a bright light engulfed them. When they opened them again, they were no longer in the small room from before but now in an empty place, one that brought forth a feeling of…nothingness to Aqua. The man before them held out a hand as a strange blue light appeared in it along with lightning. Eyes widening, Aqua got in front of Neo as the man fired the sphere of lightning at them and she deflected it with Keyblade.

Still, the force of the attack was enough to make Aqua stagger back and she bumped into Neo who grunted as she nearly fell over. Both of them managed to straighten themselves up, both facing down the strange man that had brought them here. Settling into her usual combat stance, Aqua faced the man that was familiar to her in both a good way and a bad way. She immediately teleported behind him and slashed at the back of his hooded head, hoping to end this fight quickly.

However the man easily spun out of the way, moving past with surprising speed and kicked her away before she could even blink. The man turned around, seeing Neo charging at him, remaining still as she approached. Neo leapt up and somersaulted down, swinging Hush down on the man who held out one hand and a red of light pierced her body…

…Which shattered into pieces.

The man immediately instantly spun around, blocking a strike from the real Neo as she came up behind. Neo wasn't sure if engaging this guy was the sane idea but with nowhere to run she had no choice but to fight.

Monty, if Roman could see her now.

She launched a flurry of blows at the man who easily dodged each and every strike with such speed and ease it barely seemed like he was taking Neo seriously at all. That was a natural blow to Neo's pride but she wouldn't let it distract her.

"Neo, watch out!" Aqua called out. "Freeze!"

Neo jumped back as Aqua fired a Blizzard spell at the man who simply held out his hand and created a wall of energy that blocked Aqua's spell. The man then pointed both hands at Aqua, firing spheres of energy at her that all collided and formed into one large sphere.

"Defend!" Aqua conjured a barrier around herself just before the sphere hit.

Boom!

Though Aqua was protected, the energy sphere blasted her away, sending her about several yards away. Neo charged again, opening her Hush to hopefully knock the man back. The man spun, launching a roundhouse kick that not only blocked Neo's attack and but also knocked her back. Neo staggered back from the force of the blow but managed to remain standing.

The man charged at her, delivering several roundhouses punches at her that she worked hard to dodge or block. The man then tried a few spinning kicks that Neo managed to block with her parasol before he flipped forward and delivered a double kick to her chest. Neo flew back but opened her Hush to slow her fall and land perfectly on the ground. Neo angrily charged again, trying everything she could to land a blow on the mysterious man but her opponent kept on dodging in such a way that made fighting her look so trivial.

Neo tried a hard sweep but the man actually back-flipped over her attack while summoning a red energy blade from not one but both hands. Neo went on try and continue attacking, launching a strike at the head which the man blocked with both blades. The launched a slash which Neo ducked under and hooked the handle of her parasol with the man's arm, allowing it to swing her off her feet and she spun her body, launching a kick down on the man's head but the man blocked again. Neo then tried slashing and stabbing at the man who either blocked or dodged before he spun out of the way of one thrust and slashed Neo in the back.

Her Aura shimmered and she felt a burning sensation in her back. She fell onto the ground, grunting as she brought her hands to her back in an attempt to lessen the pain. That was when Aqua teleported in front of the man and delivered a slash to his chest, knocking him away from her partner. The slash sent the man flying back and crashing into the ground but a second later he got back up, barely looking winded.

The man then shot forward and delivered a slash of his own to Aqua's chest in the exact same manner she did to him.

Aqua let out a cry of pain, holding her chest and immediately cast Cura on herself. "Heal!"

A green light instantly healed the pain and she grasped her Keyblade with both hands. Now fully healed, Aqua turned and faced the man who watched her with could be interpreted as interest.

'I can't use spells on him since he can just block them.' Aqua realized. 'If that's the case…'

She teleported in front of him and swung her Keyblade at his head.

'I'll have to fight up close!'

The man's red blades blocked her Keyblade and spun; knocking Aqua's Keyblade aside and kicked her in the chest. Aqua grunted and thrust her Keyblade at the man who spun to the side and fired an energy blast, only Aqua didn't slow down when the man dodged her attack and ducked under the energy blast. She then swung her Keyblade up, hitting the man's hand and tried to bring it down on his head. The man jumped back, dodging Aqua's strike and held out his hands.

He started firing blue energy blasts at not just Aqua but Neo, who had just recovered as well.

"Guard!" Aqua shouted, forming a barrier around herself while Neo used her aerobatic and dance like skills to dodge the incoming energy blasts.

Neo suddenly allowed one attack to hit her and she immediately shattered. The real Neo had snuck up behind the man to try and catch him off guard. However just as she thrust the blade sticking out of the end of Hush at him, he jumped and somersaulted over her. As soon as he landed he immediately backhanded Neo, sending her away by several feet but Aqua teleported in and delivered a slash to his shoulder, forcing him back.

The man stepped back, not acting wounded at all as he brushed his shoulder. "Impressive…friend. Perhaps I do not need to hold back."

The man shot forward with his red energy swords blazing. Aqua grunted as the man launched a series of slashes that she was hard pressed to block and even as she tried to counter the man jumped over her Keyblade as she swung it, delivering two slashes to her head that knocked her down as he spun in mid-air.

Aqua growled as a bright blue aura surrounded her. "Spellweaver!"

She threw her Keyblade at the man who dodged but Stormfall flew right back at him, following Aqua's movements as she spun and twirled like a dancer. The man had to bat away Stormfall several times before it flew back into Aqua's hands. The man pointed a hand at her, gathering blue energy while Aqua pointed her Keyblade at him. A surge of lightning was unleashed from the man's hand while Aqua's Keyblade released a burst of light that collided with the energy blast…

BOOM!

Neo watched with widened eyes from the explosion created by the attack but saw the two were not done. Aqua began spinning, an icy whirlwind surrounding her as she flew at the man who held up his hands and summoned another energy wall to block her attack. The energy wall strained to hold back Aqua's attack but an explosion of blue light in the form of a snowflake appearing above Aqua's head shattered it.

Seriously, was this girl secretly a Schnee?

"All-Vanity." The man whispered and a sphere of energy surrounded him and even lifted him off the ground.

Before either Aqua or Neo could do anything, two beams of light shot out from the sphere right at them.

"NEO, MOVE!" Aqua shouted, having no choice but to protect herself with a barrier since she couldn't get to Neo in time.

The barrier slammed into her and knocked her back while Neo didn't even have a chance as the beam hit her and sent flying far back, even breaking her Aura as she slammed into the ground. Aqua didn't fare much better not long after that, her barrier shattering and taking the full brunt of the attack. She let out a cry as she crashed back into the ground near Neo.

(Kingdom Hearts Soundtrack Disappeared Ends)

The man slowly landed back on the ground and approached them. "Is this all you can offer me, friend?"

Aqua growled as she cast another Cura on herself, managing to heal her injuries. She looked over at Neo and saw she was barely clinging to consciousness after that attack. She looked at the man as he slowly approached them, summoning his red glowing swords, Ethereal Blades.

"I don't know who you are…Whether you are Xehanort or Terra…" Aqua said as she began to glow once again. "But no matter who you are, no one hurts my friends!"

(Kingdom Hearts Soundtrack Critical Drive)

As a bright aura engulfed her, her Wayfinder charm started to glow and a similar light appeared from under the man's dark coat. "This…This feeling…"

"Ghost Drive!" Aqua shouted, vanishing in a blur.

She reappeared in front of the man, delivering a few quick slashes with her Keyblade before the man retaliated and stabbed her through the chest.

Only it wasn't the real Aqua.

It was an afterimage left behind by the real one as she moved so fast and delivered several slashes to the man, even sending him flying off the ground and delivering a final strike from overhead that sent him crashing into the ground.

(Kingdom Hearts Soundtrack Critical Drive Ends)

The pocket dimension the man had brought them in faded away, returning them to the chamber they had stood previously in. The man staggered back, collapsing onto the throne like chair while Aqua was panting heavily. She fell back, dropping the Horn of Passage as it tumbled near Neo who was staring in stunned silence from her own spot on the floor.

Did they win?

She looked over at Aqua who was extremely exhausted, having used up her magic and energy to deliver that one final attack on the man. Aqua felt as she bad as she looked, her body aching from the insane fight she had just gone through. The man was so powerful and skilled it had taken everything she had just to survive.

A crackling energy was heard and both Neo and Aqua looked with sheer terrified looks as the man stood up from the chair, clenching blue energy in a single fist that made it appear like he was wounded before it faded away and the man stood up perfectly like he hadn't suffered a single wound. Aqua and Neo were both stunned, wondering if they had inflicted even a single scratch on the man at all.

"Impressive." The man said as he slowly walked forward.

Aqua frantically tried to get up but her body was so tired that the moment she did she fell back, almost falling on her old armor. She closed her eyes, waiting to hit the ground…

Only to feel a pair of arms catch her.

She opened her eyes, finding herself in the man's arms as he slowly knelt down, allowing her to sit on the ground while keeping her in his arms.

"…Terra?" Aqua slowly whispered, finding it hard to stay awake at this point.

The man slowly reached up with one hand, pulling back his hood and silver hair fell down his shoulders. Neo spied a pair of orange eyes.

For Aqua, she recognized the silver hair and tanned skin but saw the style and face being the same as her lost friend… "Terra…"

"It's been a long time, my friend." He reached up and brushed a strand of Aqua's hair from her face. "That light I felt…Even after all this time…you carry us within your heart."

Just as Aqua was on the verge of fainting, the man in a surprising move to both himself and her, moved forward and caught her lips with his. Aqua stirred and seemingly moaned in the kiss as she closed her eyes and seemingly passed out, too weak to do anything else in the moment. Neo was stunned from the sudden kiss, not sure what to make of it. The man softly pulled away and laid the now sleeping Aqua on the ground.

He did not know why he did that, whether it was truly motivated by his feelings or influenced by the feelings of the original owner of this shell of a body. He truly did not know but did not fight these feelings as he looked upon the sleeping Aqua.

"Perhaps you can continue to help us…" The man said before glancing at Neo, his soft look becoming completely blank as he looked at her. "As for you. Perhaps you can also be useful to us."

Neo decided that would be bad for her and immediately latched onto the Horn of Passage, pulling it to her and blew on it.

The horn released a blue mist that solidified into Heimdallr who floated before the three, surprising the man. "You summoned me?"

"Yes! Take us back! Back to where we were! The island, Remnant, even the Realm of Darkness! Anywhere!" Neo called out.

"As you wish!" Heimdallr said, summoning a bright rainbow colored portal in front of them.

The man covered his eyes as the portal engulfed Aqua, Neo and even Aqua's discarded armor. When the light faded, the man opened his eyes and saw he was alone now in the Chamber of Repost.

The man stared at the floor where Aqua had been lying before walking back to his chair and sat on it. "It seems our reunion was not meant to last…Very well but we will see each other again and very soon…Aqua."

He knew she was out there, possibly back in the Realm of Darkness with her armor and Keyblade returned to her.

Perhaps she could lead him to their other friend.