A/N: Since there was some confusion about the last chapter, we'd like to clarify that the vast majority of the chapter consisted of Axel, Riku, Sora, and Roxas's dreams. xD Sorry about the confusion, we were trying out a new style.

Axel POV

I couldn't sleep after that dream I'd had. It just…stuck with me for some reason. But, I can't really worry about it now. There are more important things to do; such as getting Roxas the hell away from Xigbar and his uncle and whoever else. I was snapped out of my thoughts when Riku told me it was my turn for the bathroom.

I walked into the relatively small bathroom and took a quick shower, not really paying attention to much of anything. A few somewhat relaxing minutes later, I stepped out of the shower and got dressed. After everyone had finished their routines, we went down to the dining room and had a bit of breakfast. It wasn't anything special; just the usual cereals, fruits, and various pastries.

My mind wandered back to the little weekend trip Roxas and I took a few weeks ago. I couldn't help but smile at the memory; it really was a good time. We'd have to go on more trips in the future. After we find him; that is…if we find him…

I was snapped out of my thoughts by Namine's soft voice. "Axel, where do you think we should look today?" She asked, looking as concerned as ever.

"Everywhere," I replied blandly.

"Sounds like a good enough plan to me." Sora chimed in, taking another bite of his bagel.

"We should narrow it down so we can search more thoroughly." Riku sighed.

"Well, if you were an evil bastard that kidnaps innocent teens, where would you hide him?" Sora asked. I had to chuckle a bit at his wording, but thought about his question.

"Well, there are plenty of suspicious basements in the bars around town; and some creepy alleyways and abandoned buildings in the sketchy part of town. I guess the old warehouse on the south side of town is pretty stereotypical too." I replied, carefully recalling as many places as I could. For once, I was somewhat glad I grew up in Traverse Town. At least I knew it like the back of my hand.

-x-

In every movie and show I'd ever seen, splitting up never ended well. It always ended up causing some sort of problem, be it comical or serious. But since we'd already wasted so much time just sitting around this morning, it seemed like a decent option. Now that I think about it, it probably wasn't the best idea to let Sora and Namine pair up. I wasn't entirely sure Sora could fend for himself, let alone Namine as well. And although Namine probably thought she could defend herself, reality was harsh. In all honesty, she's a tiny girl. It's too late to go back now, so we just have to keep looking.

Riku and I scanned the streets, searching fervently for any sign of Xigbar or Roxas. We doubted they'd keep him in plain sight, but it couldn't hurt to look. We stopped by the old department store, Moogle Mart, to see if they knew anything. Those shopkeepers were always gossiping about everything. Riku decided to talk to them, since they never trusted me anyway. We walked through the scratched up automatic doors into the store, and I wandered around looking for signs of Xigbar or Sephiroth while Riku talked. I texted Sora to see how they were doing, and he replied almost instantly with "nothing yet, this sucks." I sighed, and Riku signaled for us to leave. Apparently they didn't know anything. With that, we left for our next destination. As we walked to the old diner, Sora called. I absentmindedly listened to Riku's end of the conversation, as depressing as it was.

"What? No, Sora...We didn't find him yet…Don't worry, we will…Just keep looking…okay…Bye." And with that, he sighed and hung up.

"They haven't found anything yet either, have they?" I muttered, kicking at a stray stone on the sidewalk.

"Nope, Sora's losing hope again. And Namine's as pissed as ever." He chuckled the last part, and shook his head slightly.

"Okay where to now, then?" I sighed, rubbing my eyes. "There are a few other stores and shops we can check, I guess."

"It's better than doing nothing."

We started walking again stopping every so often to lean into stores and ask a few people. There weren't many that even looked interested in helping either. For the most part, we'd ask and they'd smirk before walking away. I never really liked the people here; they were always too stuck up.

We basically went door to door to every shop in the districts, asking anyone and everyone we could. Very few even spoke to us, and the ones who did were less than helpful. It was discouraging, but there's no way we're going to give up now.

At around 3 in the afternoon, Sora and Namine called again. I didn't pay much attention, preferring to keep looking around. Riku eventually told me we needed to take a break, because Sora and Namine were hungry. It was probably for the best anyway, since we'd been searching all morning. Still, when the food arrived, no one moved to start eating.

"Eat. Everyone," Namine snapped, picking up her fork and stabbing a piece of lettuce from her salad. I stared at her, ready to comment, but Sora beat me to it.

"Namine, not to be…blunt or anything, but you're awfully…forceful?" Sora muttered. I snorted with laughter. Not how I would have worded it, but it was Sora.

"At least I'm not walking around with my tail between my legs." She sighed, putting her fork down. "It seems that Riku and I are the only ones with a rational attitude at the moment." Riku looked down, as if avoiding any coming tension.

"What the fuck did you just say?" I spat. How dare she say something like that?

"Nothing that isn't true." She sighed, taking another bite of her salad.

"Well excuse me if I'm upset that my boyfriend's been kidnapped, is probably hurt, and we have no fucking idea where he is!" I practically screamed, grabbing my soda and walking away. I barely made it a block away from the diner before Riku caught up to me.

"Hey, man, don't take it personally. Everyone's just really stressed out and upset by all of this." He murmured, putting a hand on my shoulder. I chose to stay silent. Riku eventually nodded and excused himself to make a phone call. And after about ten minutes of listening him argue with Namine on the phone, we set back out to look for Roxas. We were originally going to switch groups, but Namine wasn't having any of that, insisting that she and Sora could handle themselves.

Meanwhile, Riku and I decided to ask around the local mini-mall, hoping for some answers. We pulled people aside left and right, yet most of them simply told us to get lost. And there was one elderly woman who attempted to mace me for some reason. She was probably senile enough to think I was going to mug her. Although the clothing store clerk, a middle aged woman, seemed to be willing to help.

"Have you seen a man with a long, black ponytail and an eye patch?" I asked. It seemed that question was becoming my own personal mantra.

"Sorry sir, I haven't seen anyone like that." She frowned, still folding shirts.

"Do you know anyone who might have any information about him?" I asked, almost to the point of begging.

"Well…My husband's friend might know something. He's such a gossip; he always knows everyone's business." She clicked her tongue and shook her head in disapproval.

"Really? What's his name and where can I find him?" I grinned, hoping for the best.

"His name's Cid and he owns the auto shop downtown. He's usually there." She smiled softly.

"Thanks so much." I called over my shoulder, already dragging Riku out the door. It took us a while to get there, but when we reached the small auto shop, we finally found Cid. We decided to ask him about everyone involved, just in case he knew of any of them.

"Well boys, I haven't seen that Sephiroth character, but there was some big guy with a scar around here earlier. He didn't say much. Just asked the same kinda questions you are. Didn't see any kid with him though," said Cid, the man who owned the shop. Ironically enough, he was the last person we would think to talk to, yet he gave us the best lead we'd had so far.

"Did you notice where he went?" Riku asked, hoping we weren't pushing our luck.

"As a matter of fact, I did." Cid said happily. "Almost left without his phone, so I had to catch up with him."

"Really?" I replied, a little too hopefully. "Where…?"

"Well, he headed down toward that old warehouse. It was the weirdest thing, I thought. But he's probably around there somewhere." I left a quick "Thanks," and ran out of the store, toward the old warehouse. Riku was already on the phone with Sora, and he and Namine were going to meet us right outside there as soon as they could.

-x-

"It seems a bit…stereotypical. Don't you think? The abandoned warehouse thing?" Sora muttered, glancing around nervously. "Like…it's just kinda cliché."

"Well, I'll just let them know when we see them. Like, hey, we appreciate your efforts in kidnapping, but next time can you do us a favor and pick a less cliché hiding place? Maybe something more original? Thanks; we'd appreciate that very much." I growled sarcastically.

"Hey, whenever you guys are done whining, we can start looking over there." Namine called, pointing down a certain row of the parking lot. "There's a car over there. Not anything big, but it's a start." I turned to look where she was point and realized she was right. There was a dark truck parked off to the side of one of the buildings. We walked over.

I could tell Sora, who was walking a few feet in front of me, was dying to say something. And this time I actually had an idea of what it might be. This was slightly poor planning on who took Roxas part. It just seemed too simple; almost planned, even. I wasn't surprised however, when Sora tugged on the door only to conclude that it was locked. There goes that idea. Deciding to look inside the warehouse now, we walked over to the nearest door. Of course, it was locked as well.

"What now?" Sora asked.

I rolled my eyes and walked to the door, ramming it with my shoulder a few times. Riku watched for a bit before, stepping in to help. "On the count of three?" I offered and Riku shrugged. "One…two…three" We each slammed a foot into the door, causing it to fly open. It banged against the back wall before swinging back weakly.

"Okay, that works," Namine said happily, strolling in, followed by Sora, then Riku and I. Even after breaking down a door…it still felt too easy. Shaking my head, I started to look around. The warehouse was much larger than it appeared to be from the outside…

It was dimly lit, with various light bulbs flickering and buzzing on and off. Spider webs clung to nearly every surface, along with a thick layer of dust and dirt. Our footsteps echoed off the bare concrete floor as we walked further into the warehouse. Old tools and metalwork littered the floor, as well as a few forgotten tables. It looked like a scene out of a horror movie. Creepy shit. We eventually made it back to the four main halls and after half an hour or so, had inspected three of them thoroughly. No sign of Roxas yet.

Suddenly, we all heard a strange crashing sound relatively nearby.

"W-what was that?" Sora asked nervously, his voice shaking. I think the atmosphere of this place was getting to him.

"Let's check it out." Riku answered, staying stoic.

We walked into the fourth and final hall, which seemed to be the source of the sound. The farther we walked in, the louder the scuffling sound became. Eventually, we ended up in front of a large metal door. It had a tiny window near the top, and fortunately I was tall enough to peer inside. What I saw nearly made my heart stop. A beaten, battered, and bloody Roxas struggled and writhed on the floor, bound by ropes and tape.

"ROXAS!" I practically screamed, trying to get his attention. His head snapped up to look toward the window, and I heard him try to yell something, but it was muffled by his gag.

"Hang in there, Rox! We're gonna get you out of here, okay?" I yelled again. He nodded in response. Right as I was trying to figure out how to get through that door, I heard a deep, gravelly voice screaming at us. All four of us whipped around to see the man glaring down at us, his eyes furious.

"Just what the fuck do you dumbasses think you're doing?" Everyone stayed in a shocked silence for a moment; we'd been found.

"We got los-"

"Don't even bother lying." The man seemed to be losing patience quickly. "Just get the hell out. NOW!" No one made a move to follow his orders.

"Good fucking luck with that! We're not leaving until we get Roxas back!" I moved forward meeting his gaze with a deadly glare. He didn't flinch. Riku turned his attention to the door which Roxas was behind and began to pull at it, trying to force it open.

"I don't really care what you think," he replied, glancing over towards Riku without much emotion. "And good luck with that." He laughed, guarding the door. "Anyway, we got hired for this. I'm just doing my job," he smirked.

"Wait…we?" His smile only grew wider. Riku stopped messing with the door and we both turned around. Sora and Namine were gone and a blonde woman stood in their place, leaning against the one of the hallway's walls. She raised an eyebrow and greeted us with a twisted smile.

"Hello kiddies," she teased in a sickly sweet tone, "seems like you're two short of your full party."

"Oh fu-" I started, before getting smacked with the back end of a gun. I recoiled from the hit and backed up against the door, hearing Roxas struggling frantically behind the door. A few moments later, Riku ran off after the large man with dreadlocks, yelling back something about Sora and Namine.

Seeing Xigbar's fist flying toward my face; I dodged it and ducked under his arm and kicked one of his legs out from under him. Now that he was off balance, I lunged and smashed my fist under his chin, knocking his head upward. I glanced around, and noticed the blonde woman was guarding the door. God damn it. In the split second I used to look away, Xigbar had recovered and tackled me to the ground. I struggled and flailed wildly to escape his grasp, but he had my arms pinned and was fucking strong for an old guy. After a few seconds, I managed to kick him off and roll far enough away to leap back onto my feet.

"Aww, someone miss their little boyfriend?" He cooed, before laughing insanely.

"Shut up!" I screamed, lunging at him again. He stepped out of the way and I nearly slammed into the wall. While I was trying to regain my balance, he tackled me down again. I struggled as much as I could, but he kept me pinned under his weight and landed countless punches. I could feel bruises and welts forming already, but kept fighting back. Finally, I got one of my arms free and smashed my fist into the side of his face. While he was stunned, I kicked him off yet again and stood up, bracing myself against the wall. I couldn't lose this fight.

"You can't win this, kid." He taunted, stalking closer to me.

"Wanna bet, old man?" I snarled, matching his movements. I just hoped he wasn't right.

He lunged first, shockingly fast. I didn't know what hit me until I was pinned to the floor, struggling to escape Xigbar's grasp.

"Just give up. You're not gonna get him back." He laughed sinisterly. At that moment, something snapped in my head. With a surge of adrenaline, I planted my feet on his chest and kicked him off of me; quickly leaping to my feet.

"I…have had…ENOUGH!" I screamed, throwing my arms outwards. I felt the flames forming around me, licking at my skin, although it didn't hurt. Eventually, strong tendrils of fire swirled down my arms, manifesting at my fingertips into the form of two chakrams. They spun rapidly as they phased into existence, spitting flames in every direction. I gripped both chakrams tightly; all rational thoughts were out the window. All I wanted to do was make them all pay.

I lunged again, throwing the flaming chakrams at him. He seemed to disappear into thin air, before quickly reappearing on the ceiling with two…arrowguns? Great, like this wasn't difficult enough already. Before I could even blink, strange bullets were raining down on me; but thankfully I could burn them away. He leapt off the ceiling, flipping down towards me, still shooting. I jumped back and rolled away; jumping up again when I'd gained some distance.

"Head's up!" He sneered, trying to antagonize me as he fired endless bullets.

"Burn!" I snarled through gritted teeth. I ran closer to him and surrounded us with a ring of flames from floor to ceiling; he isn't going to get away this time. He rained another barrage of bullets at me, but I deflected them with a chakram.

"You won't get him back, kiddo." He laughed.

I screamed in utter frustration and rage, letting the flames around me feed off the emotions. They grew and hissed; spreading, consuming everything around them. I stalked closer to the man; shaking, my breath quivering from the adrenaline pumping through my veins. I clutched my chakrams in each hand, waiting until I was in point blank range.

"Guess what happens now?" I taunted, grinning. I didn't wait for a response before I flung the chakrams at him, each hitting their mark perfectly; one into his chest and the other into his leg. He wouldn't be putting up much of a fight now. I extinguished most of the flames and turned, walking back to the closet where Roxas was kept.

-x-

Riku POV

"This is a bit pointless don't you think?" Xaldin hissed through grinning teeth. I frowned at him, glancing over at Sora and Namine who were tied in the corner. My eyes narrowed into a glare.

"Let them go," I said in a low growl. Xaldin broke into laughter, twirling one of his blades around in his hands.

"I'd really rather not," He said lunging forward. I jumped back, stumbling a bit. I tried to regain my balance quickly, hurrying in time to dodge the next attack. He struck again and this time there wasn't a chance for me to dodge. I tthrew an arm up in defense, squinting my eyes shut and hoping I could recover from the blow in time. The sound that followed was metal on metal.

"What the-" I closed my hand around the sword that had appeared and smirked. In actuality I was just as shocked as Xaldin. I pushed back with my own blade and jumped back. "Where the hell'd you get that?" He demanded in an anxious voice. Ignoring him, I sliced forward. His sleeve was caught by the edge and he flinched slightly. The shock had thrown him off a bit, which put us on a much easier playing field for me. I swung again, catching the side of his face. "You trying to kill me kid?"

"Just returning the favor," I said. My gaze flicked over towards Sora for a second. He looked frightened. "Shit…" I mumbled in my head. I swung again, a false swing that he dodged easily, and when he was distracted I slammed my shoe into his stomach. He stumbled to the ground, coughing. "No I won't sink to that level." I flipped the sword in my hand and smashed the handle into the side of his head. He fell limp.

After making sure Xaldin would be out for a while, I turned back to Sora and Namine, who were still tied together tightly. My gaze flickered around the room quickly, hoping no one else was around to attack us. With careful precision, I cut the ropes that bound them. Sora rubbed his wrists, frowning. Namine quickly piped up, "Uh, guys. Let's get the hell out of here before we get jumped again." I laughed briefly and nodded in agreement. "Yeah, let's go."

We decided to run for it, after hearing footsteps not too far away. Barely even a minute later, a knife flew past my head as we heard high pitched giggling. "Thought you could get away that easily?" Larxene laughed, throwing a few more knives at us. I quickly grabbed Sora and shoved him behind me, against the wall. I heard Namine gasp as a few knives grazed her skin, leaving several cuts. "You bitch!" She shouted, stomping her foot. She angrily ran to Larxene and promptly slapped her a few times, before shoving her away. "RUN!" She yelled, gesturing at us to hurry up.

Axel POV

"Roxas!" I called out, banging on the door of the closet where he was kept, "Are you all right?" I looked through the tiny window to see him shaking his head "no." He looked like he'd been beaten again while I was off fighting Xigbar. I heard footsteps coming toward us again, and prepared for the worst. Luckily, once I got a closer look, I realized that it was just Riku, Sora, and Namine. With a small sigh of relief, I started working on the lock. Of course, it had to be a heavy, rusted out padlock. Riku and I immediately slammed ourselves into the door, but it didn't even budge. The door was too heavy to break down. Namine sat on Sora's shoulders, looking in at Roxas. "Guys, he's freaking out in there, hurry up!" She yelled. "We're trying!" Riku said back. Fed up I pointed the chakram at the door and blasted the lock off. There was a silence as we stared at the sizzling, melting lock. I pushed the door open and ran in.

"ROXAS!"

A/N: OHMYGOD. /flails/ we're so sorry there hasn't been an update in months. Truth be told, this chapter was kinda hard to write. Really. Fight scenes are not Missa's strong point and both of us were having tons of writers block. And then life-senior year, college apps, classes- all that dumb, not fun stuff got in the way. But we are back! Just in time to finish up the fic. Updates are going to start coming out regularly, but we've reached the last 5-ish chapters. So, thanks so much for sticking with us through our absence. Let's finish this thing D /dramatic music