A/N: I uploaded a new piece to my Deviant Art, titled Twilight's Balance Keyblade V2. Please check it out, and let me know if you like V1 or V2 of Ren's keyblade better. I personally like V2 better, seems cleaner and a bit more put together overall, so I might make that the main design to Ren's blade going forward.

Edit: I went with V2, so I updated Chapter 2 to reflect this.

Also, there's going to be a large authors note at the bottom to answer a question I got in a PM, that I think I'll get again after this chapter, so read that if you wish. Enjoy the chapter!

"Thundara!"

A few bolts of lightning struck a group of heartless, vaporizing them instantly and leaving behind nothing but dark puffs of smoke in their wake. Alina lowered her staff after casting the spell, turning to Ren and giving him a small smile, and the islander couldn't help but let his mouth fall open a bit in shock.

"That was amazing!", Ren expressed, as they continued walking. "Who needs a keyblade when you got magic like that!?"

"It's nothing that impressive", Alina shyly stated, sighing a little. "I can really only do intermediate level magic. You should've seen my master…"

"Intermediate level?" Ren asked, tilting his head in confusion.

"Oh, right", Alina sheepishly smiled. "I guess you wouldn't know, just having gotten your keyblade. Magic spells like Fire, Cure, and Thunder all have 'levels' associated with them. For example, the spell simply known as Fire is a beginner level spell, while Fira is it's intermediate counterpart. I guess you can call Fire a level one spell, while Fira is a level 2 spell."

"Ok, I think I follow so far", Ren nodded, showing his understanding. "So what would be beyond that?"

"Beyond Fira is Firaga", Alina explained, looking down at her staff. "Though I am nowhere near good enough to cast that one yet, let alone the spell above that. See, each magic tier ends in a suffix, with -a or -ra indicating level two spells, while -ga indicates level three magic, and usually the most advanced traditional mages go. Barely any will learn level four magic."

"Level four magic!?" Ren went wide eyed in awe.

"Yes", Alina nodded. "Most mages just move on to learn different spells after they master the level 3 version of any spell, mostly because -ja or -za, also known as level four magic, is just so difficult to learn. It's easier to just go for the alternative spells to widen your options when it comes to magic, especially if your only focusing on offensive magic. There are people and creatures out there completely immune to certain types of magic, like Fire."

"I think I understand", Ren muttered, thinking it over a bit. "So, what spell did you use to bring me back from the dead?"

At that, Alina had to chuckle a bit. "Cura, a level 2 healing spell. I would've used Curaga to avoid having to give you that potion I made you drink, but I am not advanced enough to cast it yet… and now, my master gone, so I'm stuck figuring it out on my own."

"He must've been an amazing teacher", Ren sympathized.

"He was", Alina sighed, reminiscing. "My master could cast level 3 magic effortlessly, meanwhile it took all my skill to cast even a simple level 2 spell just a few weeks ago. He even could cast Flare, a really advanced and powerful damaging spell, with barely any effort, though I've only seen him do it once… come to think of it, how did Garland even defeat my master? I get that Garland is the finest swordsman in the land, but my master was the palace grand wizard. Garland should've stood no match against my master."

"Maybe he tricked him", Ren suggested.

"Or perhaps, the power of the heartless and darkness was too much for him to handle", Gamma pointed out. "We haven't seen what Garland can do yet. I say that we air on the side of caution and let me, Alpha and Beta take the frontal assault, while Miss Alina backs us up."

"And what do I do?" Ren inquired, realizing that the robot had yet to mention his role in the plan.

"You will defend Miss Alina", Gamma all but ordered. "The creator would dismantle me and wipe my memory banks if anything happened to her."

Ren felt the tension in the robot, and knew that despite the king's faith in them, the robot just seemed to know they were walking into a battle they were unlikely to win without either luck or a miracle. The robots seemed pretty confident they could at least fight Garland, but with Ren and Alina in tow, it was a risky endeavor having to protect them as well. Ren blinked as he adjusted to a sudden increase in light, before realizing they had cleared the forest and came to a stop at a large building with a stone carving of four crystals on it.

"The Temple of Fiends", Gamma explained. "Legend goes that four elemental fiends, one of earth, one of fire, one of water and one of wind, were defeated here 2000 years ago and sealed away. I believe Xehanort was interested in that legend, hence why he came to this world in the first place. I wonder if he believed that the fiends originated from darkness, or were somehow connected to the heartless."

"Or are very powerful heartless themselves", Ren guessed before summoning his keyblade to his side. "Alright, let's do this!" Stepping forward, flanked by the two prototype robots, Ren pushed open the double doors to the temple, where there was a shrine that seemed dedicated to the four elements. At the far end of giant room, lie a mint green haired girl wearing a white dress, her body placed on an alter as if she was just sleeping.

"Princess Sarah!" Alina shouted, but before she could run forward a sudden portal of darkness appeared in front of the alter, and a iron clad knight wearing a purple cape came out of it. He had on a helmet, so Ren couldn't see his face, but he could see two glowing orbs from underneath his helmet, yellow in color.

"UNHAND THE PRINCESS!", both the prototype robots shouted, each one stepping forward to cover Ren. Gamma also stepped forward, to Ren right, while Alina remind behind the keyblade wielder, tightly gripping her staff.

"So, the king sends the mad scientist's toys to deal with me instead of his own men?" Garland hissed, eyeing his opponents carefully. "Or is their more to this then meets the eye?" He turned his gaze to Alina, who backed up a bit out of instinct. "Ah, the grand wizard's apprentice. Come to take revenge for your master's sake? I assure you, he didn't suffer long."

"Don't you dare taunt me with that", Alina snarled, stepping forward with a shaking leg and glaring at the dark knight. "You betrayed the kingdom and took Princess Sarah! What are you trying to accomplish that you need to resort to a vicious act like that!?"

"I want to rule over The Crystal Kingdom", Garland explained. "Our king is unfit to rule, so I kidnapped the princess as a… bartering chip of sorts. But none of the other knights would listen to me, so I had to dispose of them. I thought I could have a discussion with the grand wizard, but he was refusing to hear me out. So I faked a surrender then-"

"You killed him when his guard was down", Alina realized, the tone in her voice getting tense and cold. "You simply murdered him without even letting him fight back, you monster! You coward! FIRA!" Alina held her staff high, the red orb glowing before it blasted a fire ball out, much bigger then the one that she used to slay the heartless earlier, however Garland was unnerved. He held his hand up, and from a cloud of darkness appeared a sword, which he sliced through the fire ball with, causing it to dissipate into nothing.

"Pathetic mage", Garland growled. "You cannot hope to defeat me. Your master was the only mage that could've had the chance, but now he is gone, and this little rag-tag team of robots you brought along with you cannot hope to defeat-". He stopped short from looking over the entire party as his eyes fell on Ren, who was still gripping his weapon tightly as he glared at the disgraced knight. "A keyblade… so that is what the king has resorted to, a child from the outside world. Boy, how long have you had that weapon you wield? Do you even know the full extent of it's power? I think not, but I cannot underestimate you now. I, Garland, will knock you all down!"

Suddenly, he vanished, and when he reappeared he was between all five of them. Before any of them could even process what had happened, a wave of darkness shot out of him, sending all five of them flying in different directions. Ren slammed into one of the pillars, sliding down it and groaning in pain, while Alina slammed back first into the door, leading on her feet but stumbling a bit as she regained balance. Gamma, Alpha and Beta flipped into the air, landing on their feet as well, bouncing back and charging at the dark knight. An aura of darkness surrounded Garland, who gripped his sword tightly and slashed at the air in a curved motion. Alpha and Beta suddenly collapsed, each one of them losing one of their robotic legs. Gamma, however, had caught the blade, and ripped it from Garland's hand before delivering a swift punch which sent the knight flying. Gamma threw the blade aside, before unlocking his gun barrels and sending a fury of energy bullets at Garland, which slammed into him chipping his armor in various places and even cracking it in others. When the shower of bullets stopped, Garlands helmet fell to the ground, revealing a black haired man with glowing, yellow eyes.

Garland snarled, darkness permeating around him in an aura resembling fire, as he charged and sent Gamma flying with a swift kick. Holding out his hand, his blade disappeared and reappeared in a cloud of darkness, the man gripping his blade tightly. He next flew at Alina, but before the girl could even react, Ren appeared in front of her and blocked the sword strike with his keyblade. The two warriors struggled for a moment, but the sinister smirk on Garland's face showed he was in control. With a flick of his wrist, Garland effortlessly disarmed Ren of his weapon before holding out his hand and blasting Ren directly in the face with a dark wave, which knocked the boy to the ground unconscious.

"REN!" Alina shouted, but didn't have time to process what happened fully before Garland turned to slice her in two. "REFLERA!", the mage became surrounded by a dome of energy which Garland's sword slammed into, but to the surprise of the fallen knight, he was knocked backwards by the force of the spell. Snarling, he shot forth another wave of dark energy, but this time Alpha and Beta got in the way, protecting Alina by taking the attack, and falling to the ground deactivated shortly afterwards.

"You're fighting a losing battle", Garland advised, watching as the two prototypes fell to the ground in a scrap heap. Gamma was back on his feet, stepping forward to get in between Garland and Alina, eying Garland as he stood just short of him. Garland eyed his robotic opponent, studying him carefully as he spoke. "I recommend fleeing. The keyblade kid is clearly a novice, and your prototypes are dismembered and no longer capable of fighting me. You and the mage are all that are left, and as strong as she is, in a prolonged battle I will break her. You, my robotic friend, are possibly the only one that could match me, but even then you are too focused on protecting the two living ones. Walk away, and I spare the children. Continue to fight, and I will kill them."

"As if we would surrender to you!" Ren suddenly shouted, struggling to stand. Alina gave a gasp, as Gamma turned to see what was going on. As Ren stood, the same dark aura that surrounded Garland had appeared around him, before he summoned his keyblade back to his hand and shot forward towards the disgraced knight. Garland roared, slamming his sword into Ren's blade. The two dark warriors clashed, each one aiming to take the other one out, but Garland's experience caused him to block every strike Ren attempted to land. To the shock of the older warrior, however, Ren was able to keep up with him, seeming to get faster and faster as the two fought.

"This is impossible!" Garland shouted in disbelief. "You're a child who just got the keyblade! You shouldn't be able to keep up with me, let alone wield the darkness like you are now!"

"I fought against two boys who were more then your match, Garland!" Ren shot back, swinging his blade up with incredible strength and creating an opening. "And if I can match up against Riku, I can defeat you too!" And with a jab, Ren's keyblade pierced through Garland's armor, puncturing his heart. Garland stumbled back as Ren pulled his blade out of the dark warrior, holding his chest and groaning in pain.

"Your darkness, it feels just like… I see, so that's how it is", Garland painfully gasped, but began to laugh suddenly. "Don't- don't think you won! My darkness… is vast and powerful. I will return… no, my heartless will return! And the four fiends will be at my command! Darkness, take me to awaken the ancient powers!"

Garland's chest wound suddenly short forth a ton of energy, which darkened the area and surrounded them all. Alina screamed, and Gamma got in front of her to protect her. Four crystals suddenly shot from the temple floor in a blur, shooting off in different directions into the sky, before the dark energy vanished. Garland was gone, his body vanishing inside of the darkness that was there just moments ago, leaving behind the dismantled robots, Princess Sarah's sleeping figure, as well as the three surviving warriors from the clash that had occurred. Ren let out a sigh, the dark aura disappearing before he looked down at his hand, shaking a little as he wondered what just happened. He turned to Gamma and Alina, the latter looking at him with a mixture of gratefulness but also fear, "Ren, what in the world was that?"

"I'm not sure", Ren's voice shook as he looked at his hand. "I was hit with his dark wave attack, and the next thing I knew, I felt this power creep up inside of me. It was almost like I absorbed most of his attack, and turned his own power against him."

"Or, his darkness influenced the darkness in your own heart", Gamma suggested. "I think we should talk to the king about this, once we return Princess Sarah that is."

"I'll carry her", Ren offered, walking up and picking up the sleeping princess, who began to stir as she was lifted by Ren, opening her crystal blue eyes and staring directly at Ren, who noticed her awaken. "Don't worry, Princess, you're safe now."

XxXxXxX

"I see, so that's what happened", King Arther was stroking his beard in thought as Gamma explained the battle to him. "Garland has been vanquished, at least for now. What he did and said at the end of your battle concerns me, however. It seems in his final moments, he used the powers of darkness to resurrect the four fiends, and now they are free to scatter about the worlds and wreak their havoc once again."

"Something else he said concerns me", Alina remarked, deep in thought herself. "I will return- no, my heartless will return. Does Garland really think he can return as an all powerful heartless?"

"If his darkness was powerful enough, yes", the king answered. "The four fiends, elemental forces using the power of darkness, have been scattered throughout the cosmos. It is perhaps reasonable to think Garland sacrificed himself to resurrect the four fiends to this domain, and once the four fiends gather enough darkness themselves, they can revive or strengthen Garland enough that he will become an all powerful heartless. In which case, he can perform untold devastation on our lands, more then he could in his current form, which was already formidable as is."

The king turned to look over at Alpha and Beta's scrap pile, which Wallace was currently sobbing over. Alina rolled her eyes, muttering something about how he needs to get over himself and that he can just rebuild them. The king sighed, turning back to the group. "If Garland becomes an all powerful heartless, there is no telling what he can do with his new, dark power. Speaking of…", the king turned to Ren, who hadn't spoken since they arrived, letting Alina and Gamma do all the talking. "Ren, you said that after Garland hit you with his dark attack, you gained a similar power to what Garland had?"

"Yeah", Ren was unsure of how the king would reply, but figured that he should be honest. "It was like my light temporary was shelved for darkness, like some kind of surge of darkness happened in my body. We were hoping you could fathom a guess as to what happened to me."

Arther hummed deep in thought for a moment, before speaking again. "Ren, I'm sure you have known this for awhile now, but your heart is not like other hearts. Your heart seems to be exactly 50% light and 50% darkness at all times, a Twilight heart, if you will. If I am to guess, getting hit by that attack awoke the dark power that lurks in your heart, so you were able to tap into the power of darkness for the first time."

"But, sire, isn't darkness a force that corrupts?", Alina pondered, seeming scared on Ren's behalf as she looked over at the grayish white haired teen.

"Under normal circumstances, yes", King Arther proclaimed. "However, Ren used the powers of darkness to defeat Garland, yet his heart has not changed at all. If darkness could corrupt him, I'd think his heart would've changed slightly from doing what he did, but it appears that is not the case."

"So Ren is immune to darkness corruption?", Gamma wondered.

"It would appear as such, yes", King Arther paused for a bit before continuing. "However, caution is still warranted when using the powers of darkness, at least until we know more about the extent of Ren's dark powers. Regardless, it is clear now what must be done", Arther stood up, looking down at Ren. "The worlds are in danger, and as the chosen warrior of the keyblade, it is your job to go forth and protect them from any threat, be it Light or Dark."

Ren sighed, shaking his head. "Well, I did want to venture forth and explore the worlds, I just didn't think it would be like this… but, Your Majesty, I am not sure how to even travel to other worlds."

To everyone's shock, the king simply smiled. "Oh, I don't think that would be a problem. Wallace… WALLACE!" The scientist was snapped out of his crying fit over his two robots from the kings shout. "You were once working with Ansem the Wise on the Gummi Ship project, were you not? Is the ship able to travel to different worlds?"

"Y-yes, sire", Wallace cried, drying his tears. "I have used it once to visit Radiant Garden, and it made the trip safely."

"Good", the king nodded to his royal scientist. "Then, Ren, the least I can do for you is provide you our vessel to other worlds, as well as give you access to The Crystal Kingdom as your home base of operations as required. I did, of course, promise to reward your handsomely for your efforts. Name your price, and I'll be sure it is done once you return from your adventures."

Ren was about to speak, but a sudden gasp from an unfamiliar voice caught his attention. Everyone turned to see Princess Sarah getting red in the face. "My hand in marriage!? W-why Ren, I know you're my knight in shining armor, b-but I must be too young for that! I'm only fourteen, after all, and I am unsure of how old you must be!"

"I'm fifteen", Ren replied to her deadpan, unsure why the girl was assuming that he was going to ask for her hand in marriage.

"W-well we'll have to wait four years", Princess Sarah stuttered, her blush ever increasing. "B-but if you insist!"

Ren just stared at her dumbfounded, and even the king gave Ren as look as if telling him to ignore his daughter. Ren looked back to Arther the King and sighed, looking down. "There's not much I want, other then The Crystal Kingdom's assistance in my quest, which is already being provided. You also did answer my question and said my friends aren't here, but… is there a possibility they could've arrived when I was gone? Or, do you think you know where they could be?"

"No one else besides you has come to our fair kingdom, Ren. However, if you take the vessel and travel to other worlds, there is a good chance you will find them. Those that lose their world either fall to darkness, or find their way to another world. And if your friend Sora has the keyblade too, then the latter surely happened to him."

"Then, I guess it's time to head out", Ren sighed, about to turn before suddenly Gamma approached.

"Your Majesty, I would like to make a request", Gamma pleaded. "I would like to join Ren on his adventures. I am fairy sure my A.I and skills will be most useful, plus I am the robot that normally operates the ship, so he will need my help regardless."

"I approve of this, Gamma", Arther smiled, turning to Wallace. "So long as your creator agrees as well."

Wallace sniffed, looking over at Alpha and Beta. "Well, I do need time to rebuild these two… Gamma being gone might motivate me to improve them. Even if I think Gamma's A.I is flawed, he is a great companion."

"If Gamma is going, then want to go too!", Alina declared, stepping forward as well. "My magic will come in handy, plus I'm doing it for me too. I think traveling the worlds will expand my knowledge… if Ren will have me, that is."

Ren nodded at her, which caused Arther to turn to Wallace, who just stared for a few moments before he sighed. "Oh, alright… just be safe, ok?"

"I will, father."

King Arther smiled, looking at each of them in turn. "Then… Ren, Alina and Gamma… go forth, and save the worlds from the Four Fiends!"

"Yes, Your Majesty!"

A/N: So, the question I got via DM was "I know Crystal Kingdom is based on Final Fantasy 1, but are you going to do other FF worlds, made up worlds or other worlds based on other forms of work?"

I really only plan on doing one other world that I have to base on something else, which actually will appear in the next two chapters! See, the thing about worlds in Kingdom Hearts is their un-predictability. No one ever thought Toy Story would be in Kingdom Hearts, yet it appeared in KH3. Additionally, other Disney worlds are risky because they could be included at anytime, even 'bombed' Disney movies like Emperor's New Groove and Treasure Planet. While I could just say "alternative version" and include it anyway, I do want to keep as much as the 'canon' of Kingdom Hearts in as possible, so I'd rather not have Ren go to a world and suddenly it's in Kingdom Hearts 4. I could easily just pull other franchises as worlds, but also many of these have to be 'fantasy' and 'Disney-like' to keep with the feeling of Kingdom Hearts. A world, like for example, Back to the Future, just wouldn't really fit in in my opinion.

So, yeah, look forward to seeing what I have planned for this story next chapter! I'll try and remeber to go into details on why I picked the world I did when I post it! See ya then!