The Boy Who Fell Through The World VIII

"I got to see this through. This place used to be my home. I need to find out what happened here and if there is any clue to finding my friends." Ven reasoned.

"And what about us?" Yuna asked. "We're so far inside this castle, how can you be sure they'll let us leave?"

"And what happens if they beat you?" Rikku asked.

Paine said nothing but despite her previous statements, she looked as concerned as Yuna and Rikku.

"It's okay. I know it's me they want so they won't think twice if you three decide to slip away." Ven answered with a smile. "Just go back the way you came and you'll be okay."

"Ven…" Yuna could barely say another word.

"Besides, I can't ask you three to help me. You're treasure hunters, not fighters." Ven turned away. "It wouldn't be fair."

The three fairies could only watch as he walked to the next door.

"You three just wait outside the castle and when I get back, we'll talk about any treasures that might be here." Ven opened the door.

The three fairies watched as he walked through the next door and closed it a second later.

They just stared at the door, hovering in mid-air.

"Ven…"

The EverAfter
'Present' Time

"That man you fought; you said you remembered him." Terra commented after Ven finished the tale of his third fight.

"Yeah. He was a guard at Radiant Garden when we were there." Ven nodded.

Neo was lying on her back, staring up at the tree branches above, having only a passing interest in Ven's tale.

Though she would admit, the fighting sound action packed, and she wasn't one to say no to some good action.

"You bored too, huh?"

Neo turned her head over, gazing at the fairy named Paine who had was staring at her with a half dazed look on her face. "…Mostly. I like the part."

"You haven't heard the big parts yet?"

Oh?

More action?

Well, maybe Neo will stay awake after all.

"I ran into him and another guard before I ran off to face the Trinity Armor with you and Aqua." Ven continued, unaware of the small talk between the former thief and the fairy. "Why would someone like him, a protector join with up this Organization?"

Terra on the other hand, recalled one of the men who had appeared with Vanitas who perfectly matched the description of the man that Ven had thought.

Flashback

"Vanitas!"

The masked boy who became one the worst enemies of Terra and his friends turned and watched the armored warrior approach. "Ah, Terra. I heard you were back…But only in the metaphorical sense. Too bad your body isn't here with us."

Terra stopped several feet away and pointed his Keyblade the dark wielder. "How are you here? Aqua told me Ven destroyed you."

Vanitas threw his head back and laughed. "She did, did she? Well, I guess Aqua either forgot…or the one you know hasn't caught up yet."

"What?" Terra muttered.

"She's the reason I came back, Terra. She appeared in Ven's heart just as the X-blade was shattered and I managed to latch onto her, follow her through her long journey. Though by that point in time it was just about over." Vanitas answered with a snicker.

Just about over?

Terra had been watching Aqua's progress and it was nowhere near over from what he saw.

Unless…

"That's right, Bronze Knight." Vanitas taunted, having seemingly read Terra's mind. "You have only seen what she has done at the beginning. I am the end result of the near end of her journey when she used the Power of Waking to reach Ven's heart."

BOOM!

Neo, Oscar and Penny's heads spun and looked in the direction of an explosion that seemingly came from the beach.

"Now what?" Neo hopped off her stump.

"This feeling…" Oscar whispered, taking a few steps forward. "It feels like darkness…and emptiness."

"You are correct, boy."

The three watched as two muscular men wearing dark coats emerged from the woods and slowly approached the tree. Neo stiffened at the sight of the dark coats they wore which were exactly the same as the one she was wearing.

And the same as the man who attacked her and Aqua.

However while she had a feeling these weren't as bad as that man, she still got the impression that they weren't the kind to take lightly.

"You came here from the darkness." Penny stated softly, staring them down with a calm but firm look. "State your purpose."

"We seek Ansem the Wise."

"Okay, now I'm mad!" Vanitas snarled as he prepared to attack.

Only before he could, a blast of wind slammed into him, knocking him into another tree that fell over. Opening his eyes, Vanitas was greeted with the surprising sight of the two men he had brought here standing with two kids who both had Keyblades

"What is this?" Vanitas grunted as he stood up.

"It's us…giving you our resignation, Vanitas." The man with dreadlocks answered. "Run back to your master and tell him we no longer serve him."

"Is that so?" Vanitas grunted but smiled. "You're Nobodies. How can you suddenly change sides like this?"

"Our brief return to our original beings showed us what we had allowed ourselves to become: pawns." The other man answered. "Pawns of your master. We only allowed ourselves to become Nobodies again…"

"To atone for our previous actions." Both men stated at the same time.

Vanitas grunted and spat. "I never wanted company along anyways…You think by now the old geezer would have learned to trust no one."

A portal of darkness appeared behind him and he slowly backed into it.

"Fine, we'll consider this a draw for the most part but just remember we are watching you just as much as you watch the world that your friend is making." Vanitas took one step into the portal. "And we have been making a lot of friends there."

He disappeared into the portal which then vanished. Seeing the threat was gone, Terra dismissed his Keyblade and turned to the others: Neo, Oscar and the two men with them.

"You two were with Vanitas." He simply said. "Why did you turn on him?"

The man with dreadlocks stepped forward. "I go the by the name Xaldin but my real name is Dilan. With me is Lexaeus whose real name is Aeleus. We were former guards at Radiant Garden and both apprenticed to Ansem the Wise."

Terra looked at them, suddenly finding them familiar. "Ansem's apprentices who betrayed him and formed the Organization. Ansem told us about you."

"I am sure whatever he said was likely true." Lexaeus stated, closing his eyes and sighed. "We six have committed horrible crimes when we betrayed our master and became Nobodies. When we were restored, Saix offered us the chance to become Nobodies again in order to find our former master who disappeared into a new world."

"A world connected to this one that lies in the darkness, beyond even the Realm of Darkness." Xaldin nodded in agreement. "We agreed but not for the reasons Saix believed. We seek our former master, not to bring him to Xehanort…"

"But to atone for our past mistakes." Lexaeus finished with a stoic and yet remorseful look on his face.

Terra looked between the two, wondering if they were actually telling the truth.

"They speak the truth."

Terra watched as Penny stepped forward. "How do you know what?"

"I have seen it." Penny answered with a smile. "I have seen what these two will do when finding Mr. Ansem and what they will become."

"And what do they become?" Terra questioned skeptically.

There was a moment of silence.

"…Family."

"I know the person you fought." Terra spoke aloud, causing Ven to look at him. "His name is Lexeaus, formerly Aeleus of Radiant Garden."

"You know him?" Ven asked.

"I've met him. He was here earlier as a Nobody…but it sounds you met him before he came here." Terra explained.

"Before he came here? But…That doesn't make sense, Terra. If I met him before you did, how do you even know him?" Ven asked, feeling very confused now.

"One thing about this place, Ven is that time is very different here." Terra stated. "It's all messed up and never is consistent."

"You got that right." Neo muttered as she sat up. "So, people from the future are appearing before people from the past are showing up. Just when I think things aren't loopy enough around here."

Ven looked at Neo for a second before looking back at Terra. "So, what did they want? If they were so good, why did one of them try to kill me?"

"It probably wasn't Aeleus you fought but Lexeaus, his Nobody." Terra answered.

"His what?"

"A Nobody is the body left behind when the heart is stolen by the Heartless." Terra clarified. "If someone's heart is strong enough, their Nobody retains their human form and memories, but they lack a heart."

"People without hearts?" Ven looked surprised by the very concept. "That…I can't believe that's actually real."

"Aqua thought the same when Ansem told her." Terra admitted. "Aeleus and Dilan found my body after it was possessed by Xehanort. My heart remained trapped while Xehanort worked with Ansem and his other apprentices into some form of research into the heart. Xehanort got his memories back and for some reason, he released his heart from my body and did the same thing to the other apprentices. Without my heart to take control, my body became a Nobody and acted on Xehanort's orders."

"No way!" Ven gasped.

"Yeah." Terra nodded grimly. "Luckily, they were defeated by Sora."

"Who?"

"Another Keyblade Wielder. A friend of the boy, Riku who I preformed the Inheritance Ceremony on before meeting you and Aqua in the Badlands." Terra clarified. "He defeated the Organization with Mickey and Riku's help but…I still don't have my body. I have no idea where it is."

"Terra…" Ven looked sadly at his friend.

"It was only thanks to Aqua that my heart was released, and it took control of my armor that got discarded when I got possessed." Terra held up a metallic hand, flexing it for a second. "For now, it will have to do until we find my body."

"So Aqua saved you and woke me up…" Ven smiled, closing his eyes for a second. "She really saved us."

"She blamed herself for what happened to us." Terra lowered his hand. "And has been trying to make things right…Maybe for a long time now."

Ven frowned, having the idea that Aqua had probably suffered for a very long time now, blaming herself for what happened to him and Terra. "Aqua…"

Neo lied back down on the ground, not wanting to be part of the melancholy moment.

"So, what happened to those two who came here?" Ven asked.

"Penny brought them to the tree."

Aeleus and Dilan stood before a door of light arched into the bark of the giant tree, staring in awe for a moment.

"And this…" Aeleus glanced at Penny. "Will take us to our master."

"It will take you where you are needed most." Penny answered.

Dilan and Aeleus glanced at each other, seemingly sharing a silent conversation before taking their first step into the door of light.

With that, they were gone.

Penny watched as the door closed.

"Penny never told us where the door sent them. Only that it would send them where they would be needed most." Terra finished.

Ven kept quiet until the end. "Where they would be needed most…Maybe that's what I should do. Maybe it'll take me to Aqua."

"It probably would." Terra nodded. "But we don't know if the timeline you meet Aqua in will be the 'present' one." He made air-quotes around the word 'present'.

"Huh?"

"Remember, Aqua is traveling through time on Remnant. If you meet her at one point in history, Ven then you might be stuck there. Apparently when you travel to one point in Remnant's history from here, your part of that history moving forward, and you can't disappear and move forward in time like Aqua is doing. It's why I haven't joined her…Yet." Terra sighed. "I could survive perhaps thousands of years as a suit of armor…But it would be pretty lonely."

"Terra…" Ven said softly.

"Maybe you can join her, or we can try that after talking with Penny." Terra surmised. "She seemed to want me to wait for I went through the door. I think she wants me to understand enough of Remnant's history before I do anything."

"Sounds like she doesn't trust you." Neo remarked casually, staring dully up at the trees.

Both wielders looked at her and Ven asked the question. "What do you mean?"

"She probably already knows what point in time you both are supposed to be in but wants you to hang back, so you won't go looking for Aqua right away." Neo replied, not bothering to look at them.

"Why would you say that?" Ven asked.

"Tree girl is not human…Not anymore. She used to be a robot, then she was human, now she's connected to a giant magical tree that's apparently the god of this entire world." Neo grabbed a leaf and lifted it over her face. "Meaning, she doesn't think as a human anymore. She thinks as someone who probably knows how it all ends, unlike the rest of us. You saw her advising Aqua. She wants to control the outcome of everything."

"That does sound like a god thing to do." Paine commented, sitting next to Neo's head.

"Take it from a fairy." Yuna spoke up, sitting on the other side.

"Penny isn't like that." Terra stated.

"And you've known her how long?" Neo retorted.

"Isn't she a friend?" Ven asked, confused by the distrust and even more so when Neo snorted.

"Neo and Penny aren't exactly on friendly terms." Terra simply said. "In fact, they were enemies before the circumstances changed. A lot of that was Neo's fault."

Neo snorted again as she sat up. "Way to stick up for a fellow wielder, Bronzy."

"I've acknowledged you have started to change and recognize your mistakes, but I don't want your distrust causing division and put Aqua's life at stake." Terra rebuked.

Neo shrugged. "Fine. Don't say I didn't warn you."

Terra looked back at Ven. "What happened after that?"

"I went up to the top floor and I…" Ven trailed off, glancing down at the ground. "I…met…someone."

"Ven?" Terra asked carefully.

"Someone was there…I think I knew them…" Ven said slowly and carefully, closing his eyes and taking a deep breath. "Before I met you and Aqua."

If Terra was in his original body, he would have raised his eyebrows. "Before you met us?"

"Yeah. Even before Master Xehanort found me." Ven nodded, opening his eyes. "I mean, we never found out where I came from or what my life was like before I was brought to the Land of Departure. But then I saw…him and suddenly a whole lot of memories just washed over me."

"I don't understand... Tell me what happened to my sister..."

"I…It's my fault."

"Ven? What are you saying?"

"I'm sorry, Lauriam... I'm responsible for what happened to her "

"Ven, don't!"

"That's not true!"

…

…

…

"Ven. What did you do to Strelitzia? Ven. Answer me."

"Ven!"

"Lauriam, stop."

"Ven. Answer me."

…

…

…

"Stop it! This isn't you!"

"Stay out of this! Answer me!"

"AAAAAAAHHH!"

The boy, Ven opened his eyes and slowly stood up. A bright light came from his chest, repelling the Darklings and the Darkness.

"Ven…"

Ven walked past them and stared up at the Darkness. "If you're pure darkness, that makes me pure light. If you used me to reshape yourself, then I can reshape you again. I'll give you a new form…that we can defeat!"

"Ven!"

"Ven!" He rushed up to the boy.

"Lauriam…"

"I can't lose you too." He said.

"Everything's going to be all right." Ven said softly.

He jumped at the Darkness.

"VEN!"

There was a flash of light…

Ven flinched as the memories flashed again in his mind. "Lauriam…His name was Lauriam. He was a Keyblade Wielder like me."

"Lauriam…" Terra softly echoed the name.

"I remember he was upset because he lost his sister…I think…I think he thought it was my fault. There was a clash and there was something there with us…Something dark." Ven continued, exhaling deeply. "That's the last thing I remembered before Xehanort found me in the Badlands."

Terra was silent as he considered what Ven had told him.

Other Keyblade Wielders?

He thought for sure, he, Aqua, their master, Ven and Xehanort had been the last ones but…Did that mean that wasn't the case?

Where there more Keyblade Wielders out there?

"So what happened next?" Terra finally asked.

Ven took a deep breath. "I made it to the thirteenth floor…"

Flashback

Castle Oblivion
13th Floor

Ven opened the door and stepped onto the thirteenth floor.

And like before, someone waiting for him.

"Welcome, boy."

The man in question, a tall and elegant man, who wore the same black cloak, black boots, and black gloves as the others he had seen before. His hair is shoulder-length and rose pink with ruffles, and his eyes were blue.

Ven paused as he stared at the man. "…Lauriam?"

The man paused, looking surprised before glaring at Ven. "How do you know that name?"

That name…

He knew it.

Even if he had forgotten who he once was, he still remembered the name.

He watched as the letters spelled a name in front of him.

L-A-U-R-I-A-M

And then were rearranged to spell…

"Marluxia." He spoke.

"A new you." The man, the Superior said with a pleased smile.

"I said," He lifted a hand above him and a single petal fell onto it before glowing and in a flash of light appeared a long pink scythe. "How do you know that name?!"

Ven readied himself, summoning his Keyblade.