Kairi had never tasted fried chicken before, but it was exemplary. She carelessly scarfed down chicken breast after chicken breast without much of a care if her appearance was ladylike or not. She was starving and all of this constant danger on an empty stomach was torturous.

Luxord's eyes held a mixture of fascination and disgust. Kairi noticed and sent a glare.

"What are you ogling at, Frog?" Chicken juice was smeared over the lower half of her face.

Luxord extended her a napkin. "The charming young lady in front of me with the appetite of an obese detached vagrant."

Kairi snatched it from him. "It's been a rough few days. I've had more adventure in the past week than my entire sixteen years of existence. Still trying to figure out if I actually like it or not."

Luxord let out a hearty laugh. "Yes, well, sometimes people wish for things for which of that they know not of, and as it fades from being fantasy and into the light of reality, you suddenly lose sight of that distant craving."

"You speak from experience?"

Luxord looked hesitant for a moment. "I've...dabbled, in my fair share of debacles caused on my own behalf, thanks to my stubborn fixation for knowledge. Sometimes you have to do things you don't want to in order to fix what you've lost, only to lose again."

"I don't think I understand that metaphor."

He chuckled. "It's no metaphor. Ah, but that's the trick, isn't it? We humans, we think too hard about concepts that are best left at bay, ideals that are best left sacred in the land of ideology. Then when trouble begins to brew," Luxord picked up a walnut out of a basket place on the table, "we find ourselves scrambling to mend the woes that we've brought unto ourselves."

He crushed the walnut with a squeeze of his index finger and thumb.

Kairi put her fork down, feeling a bit uneasy by his sudden shift in tone. "You seem rather melancholic. Is there something you wish to talk about?"

"It's nothing. Just a little regretful, that's all."

That uneasy feeling at the bottom of Kairi's gut began to slowly deviate into slight fear. Maybe it was a bad idea to go along with whatever this guy had to offer. Her mother did always tell her never talk to strangers, but desperate times called for desperate measures, and Kairi desperately needed food.

"I apologize, I've been so rude this evening," Luxord said, returning to his charming demeanor. "Please, continue with your meal."

Kairi didn't make a move for her food. She was quite full, and the tension wracking her brain made her appetite practically disappear. "I think I've had my fill."

"It was good, yes?"

"Why did you bring me here?"

Luxord used a cloth to dab at his chin. "Well, I suppose the question was only inevitable. Can an honest man not take a maiden out for a bite without a call for suspicion? In spite of my natural charisma, respectable demeanor, and professional charm, it wasn't enough to avoid the unavoidable."

"Cut the games. Out with it, you. I want to know why you chose me of all people to take out here. If it's money you're after—"

"Please. Can we not jump to conclusions? As I said before, your resplendence deserved the most ostentatious regard. Is that really so hard to—"

"Actually, it is. Forgive me for lacking much patience but I really have no business staying here. I... I'm sorry for wasting your time."

A brief silence passed before Luxord sighed. "I'm sorry, too."

Kairi raised an eyebrow. "Huh?"

"Forgive me." Luxord lifted himself from the table and approached the young girl menacingly.

Kairi shot up from her chair, not caring that it fell backwards. "What are you doing?"

He reached out for her. "I'm terribly sorry for this. It's nothing personal."

Kairi kicked him in the shin.

"Agh!"

"I'm leaving!" Kairi declared before hurrying for the door, attracting the attention and curiosity of many that surrounded them. Before she could reach the door, Luxord landed in her path. Just what sort of agility did he have? Kairi was starting to think this guy may not have been who he said he was...

"I'm afraid I can't let you do that, my dear."

And with a gasp, all Kairi saw was black.

She really hated being a damsel in distress...

So many questions...

For instance, just who the hell were these crackpots and what could they want from Sora? What was their purpose? And why hadn't they shown themselves before today?

Sora rolled out of the way of an incoming ice barrage from Vexen. Sora was ready to wipe that smirk off his face the first chance he got.

"You're slowing down!" Vexen taunted.

No kidding. Sora felt like he was on the verge of passing out.

An incoming Neoshadow hurled towards Sora and he readied himself, but then for a brief instant, he didn't see a Neoshadow—he only saw Xion running his way, her eyes wrought with tears that streamed down her stained cheeks. "Sora!"

Completely caught off guard, the winded hero merely cowered before her. "No!" he cried. He didn't have the brain capacity to think to dodge or attack.

Luckily, the Neoshadow was blasted by a ray of light before it could reach him. Sora snapped out of it once he noticed Amaya running towards him from behind, still holding onto Aeris' hand.

"Sora, snap out of it!" she yelled.

"R-Right..."

Vexen snickered.

Sora couldn't focus. His head was throbbing uncontrollably. He grunted as he tried to shake the pain away, but when he opened his eyes—he was in a dark room.

It looked as if he had a spotlight cast on his figure. This must have been some kind of trick. He kept his Keyblade ready if an enemy jumped out of the shadows.

"Show yourself!" he yelled, his eyes darting in every direction, a bead of sweat slowly grazing down the side of his forehead.

"You failed."

"Who's there?!" Sora turned around.

"You promised that you would keep her safe. You promised."

That voice...

No...

Out of the shadows came a woman with chestnut hair reaching to her back, and hazel eyes. Her face was dark, grim, as the shadow from highlighted her expression in the most eerie way possible.

"Mom...?" Sora backed up slowly.

"You promised that you would protect her... and look at what has happened. Now she's gone. Because of you!"

"N-No, I-I-I didn't mean to—"

He stopped once he bumped into something behind him. He turned around to see the equally grim expression of his father. He had jet black hair and blue eyes.

"I'm disappointed in you, Sora. You've let us all down..."

"Dad, I—"

His mother broke down into tears. "How could you have let that man hurt our little Xion? I trusted you to protect her—I trusted you!"

She collapsed onto her feet, and Sora reached out for her, but his father held him back as he ran up to his wife and held her as she let out her sobs.

"You see what you've done?"

Sora looked at the sight with horror cast on his face. "No... N-No, I—"

"You inconsiderate, degenerate, irresponsible excuse for a son. You've made your mother cry!"

Before Sora can even respond, he looked to his left to spot none other than Xion emerge from the shadows with her face also in tears.

"Sora..." her voiced cracked. "How could you? Why didn't you save me?"

"I tried to save you! I really did!" He ran up to her and took her hand. It felt cold and clammy. She couldn't even look him in the face. "Xion, I... I'm sorry... I didn't think that—"

"It's all your fault," she said. "It's all your fault..."

Sora didn't even know what to say.

"It's all your fault," his mother and father said in unison.

Xion looked at him with darker expression. "It's all... your... FAULT!"

Before he could react, Xion unleashed a Keyblade, specifically the same blade as his own, the Kingdom Key, and launched towards her brother with a fiery vengeance.

Sora flipped back and was able to block her attacks as he backed away. To his surprise, she was supremely skilled at using her—his Keyblade in the most advanced fashion. She slashed at him relentlessly, her eyes angry and brimming with tears.

"Xion, what are you doing?!"

The next thing he knew, another Xion came out from the shadows, also holding a Keyblade, and kicked him right in his side.

Sora belted out in pain. He noticed his mother still crying in the corner of the spotlight as his father comforted her.

The two Xion's calmly, but threateningly walked towards him.

"It's all your fault," they synchronized.

Sora staggered his way back up to his feet, trying his best to hold back the pain. Both of the Xion's attacked, but Sora was able to block their attempts. He refused to fight back. He chose to remain on the defensive end. He couldn't hit his own sister. Or... sisters?

What the hell was going on?

Sora dodge rolled between them and flipped into the air to deliver a whiplash from his Keyblade, the wind being strong enough to knock them both back.

Before he could move, another Xion leaped out of the shadows from behind him and grabbed him by the torso, flipped over, and tossed him forward. The other two Xion's hit Sora with two blasts of light energy, making him crash into the ground.

Sora coughed, his strength slipping away from him as each second passed by. But he refused to fight back—partially because he didn't know what in the world was happening.

One of the Xion's yanked him up by his hair and smashed his face into the ground. Sora groaned in pain, and felt himself being picked up yet again, only to receive an onslaught of quick kicks from a plethora of Xion's.

Sora was able to block a few, but for the majority of it, he had no choice but to feel the wrath of their incessant rage. The Xion's seemed to be multiplying every second, jumping out of the shadows, each just as angry and heartbroken as the last.

He smashed into the ground. Sora painfully lifted himself up onto his knees, but he was immediately kicked to the side by a Xion. The next thing Sora knew, he was being beaten to a pulp by a plethora of vengeful little sister's, batting him with their Keyblades and advanced magic.

Blood trailed down the side of his mouth as a Xion lifted his face to look her in the eyes. He was being held by two others, while about twelve other Xion's watched on with the same eerie glare.

"Why didn't you save me, Sora? Why didn't you save me?!"

The Xion pulled her Keyblade back and stabbed him in the heart.

"AGHHH!"

Sora opened his eyes and found himself strapped to a right-side up table.

"You're finally awake," said a deep voice.

Sora examined the area around him. He was surrounded by some kind of advanced technology and there was a sharp, claw attached to some sort of unit pointed to his chest. He looked over to find a man in a black hood, sitting in a chair, waiting patiently for him to wake up.

"Well, it's about time."

Sora tried to power out of the straps, but they were locked tight, and he tried summoning his Keyblade, but to no avail.

"Don't bother," the mysterious figure said as he rose from his chair, pacing back and forth slowly with his arms behind his back. "Those restraints are made out of the same material as the shackles in the dungeon—as in, summoning that little Keyblade of yours is futile."

"What's going on here?" Sora asked, irritatingly.

The figure removed his hood to reveal himself as Master Xehanort. "Your extraction."

Sora squinted. "A little context, please?"

"Oh, most definitely." Xehanort pressed a button on a remote device, and from the floor, right across from Sora's position, rises a platform with a similar right-side up table. Though, this one has Kairi, her mother, Claire, Aeris, and Amaya all chained up in shackles—each and every one of them unconscious.

Sora's eyes widened. "NO!" He tried harder to power out of the shackles, but the effort really was meaningless, but he had to try. He was not about to lose anybody else again.

"Welcome to Hollow Bastion, my boy," said Xehanort with a grin. "It used to be the castle where the queen and king ruled, but after I acquired it, I figured some redecorating was in order." He took a seat, crossing his leg. "Meaning that we've had certain advanced technology and designs implemented into this structure. It was a bit too, bright, for my taste."

"Let them go! Please, dude, I'll do whatever you want, just please—don't hurt them!"

Xehanort smirked. "No can do. You don't think I'd go out of my way to bring you here for no reason, did you? You fell for the trap so spectacularly. Everything you've done up to this point has been in my favor."

"What are you talking about?"

"The great Keyblade war, prophesized to bring about the ancient X-blade with the power to unleash the door to darkness and bring about the realm of darkness. With that power at my disposal, there's no limit to my will, you see."

"So, that's what this is all about?" Sora asked with a sharp glare. "Power? Sounds pretty basic—I expected something better."

"It is simple, but a plan that's practical. The light has become supreme, I figured it was high time that darkness had its moment of triumph. And, here we are. Of course, you are essential in this whole dilemma. You see, that Keyblade of yours is special. Not only does its bearer have a special connection with the princess thanks to her grandfather, but it was conjured by Merlin the Wizard.

"Long ago, before the first ancient Keyblade war in a battle for control of the light, there were two Keys in particular that had the ability to open, or close, the door to darkness and keep the realm of darkness at bay. That being the X-blade, and... the Kingdom Key.

"The Foretellers entrusted Merlin with the Kingdom Key and the ability to pass down the mantle to someone worthy. But the trick was that only the one who could lift the Kingdom Key from the stone would be the one who was fit to protect the realm of light. Great job on that, by the way.

"It all worked in my favor, as Merlin, Claire, and Hope all grew desperate enough to bring about the trial of the Kingdom Key to find someone suitable to protect their daughter, since she and the Kingdom Key have a sort of—ancestral connection. As soon as I heard that you had become the chosen wielder, I knew exactly what to do with you, boy. I just had to be patient. Test the waters. Plan my next step with care.

"I knew I'd never convince you to open the door to darkness for me, being a protégé of Miss Farron, I suspected that you'd so foolishly choose to battle the darkness instead of embracing it, ignorant of the fact that darkness is a means to a better world. But I know the truth. And so I led you all here, or should I say, we led you all here—a pawn into our trap."

"We?" Sora lifted an eyebrow.

Right on cue, in walked a few familiar and unfamiliar faces, all wearing similar black coats; Zexion, Saïx, Fuu, Vexen, Ansem, and Xemnas. Sora gave Xemnas in particular a bloodthirsty gaze, feeling his urge to kill him at any moment.

"You see, we needed you alive so that we could obtain your darkness," Xehanort continued. "That's why I had your sister killed, so that the rage would surely develop in an expedient manner to my liking. Now that your heart is gushing with morbid darkness and rage, it'll be the perfect opportunity to create ourselves a new... 'friend' with that darkness burbling in your heart. And now, my boy, you will take part in this extraction." Xehanort pushed his claw contraption onto Sora's chest, its sharp edges made Sora let out a painful scream.

It took a moment for Sora to catch his breath. "If it's me you want, then leave my friends out of it!"

Xehanort shook his head. "Your compassion is moronic." He gestured his men to do his bidding. "Just sit back and enjoy the show... Sora."

Sora grit his teeth. "Who are you?"

He only grinned in response.

Sora watched, confused as Fuu pulled a dagger out from the back of her pocket. She played with the sharp tip as she strolled past all of the unconscious females almost nonchalantly.

"W... What are you doing?" Sora trembled.

Fuu walked up to Aeris, and without hesitation, brutally smashed her dagger into her shoulder.

"N-No... stop it! S-Stop it!"

Fuu ignored him and jabbed the dagger into Amaya's thigh.

"Stop it... stop it!"

Fuu tossed the knife into the air, caught it, and slashed Claire on the side of her stomach.

"Don't hurt them! Just—just leave them out of this!"

Unknown to Sora, the claw device attached to his chest jolted with more energy the angrier and more distraught he became. Xehanort smiled maniacally. "Yes, boy!"

Fuu swiped the dagger across Kairi's arm.

"I SAID STOP IT!" Sora blurted. "Not Kairi, man! Don't you dare lay a finger on her or I swear I will fucking bust out of these chains and kill every single one of you!"

Vexen rubbed his chin, with a sinister smirk. "Master Xehanort, it seems that the princess caused the biggest reaction out of him. Perhaps, his care for her is quite significant."

"Why, you're right, Vexen," Xehanort said, almost mockingly to poor Sora. "Kill her," he commanded Fuu.

Fuu nodded, raising the dagger to Kairi's neck.

"I SAID... STOP!"

However, before Fuu could slit Kairi's throat, she, as well as the others, were distracted by the sudden increase of velocity Xehanort's device. Xehanort smiled.

"He's ready..."

Xehanort summoned his Keyblade and kicked the claw unit to the side and pointed his blade at Sora's heart. "We needed you to feel that rage so that it could be easier for me to extract the darkness inside of you, now that your heart is vulnerable! Thanks for your assistance, boy."

A beam of darkness from Xehanort's Keyblade struck Sora in his chest used and Sora felt suffocated as a sphere of dark energy slowly phased through his chest. He could hardly breathe, and he gasped for air, but it didn't matter. He was stuck—and as soon as it left him, Sora was hit by overwhelming fatigue. But somehow, he was still alive.

The dark sphere was enveloped into what looked like a cocoon of darkness, until a body finally came into fruition. The figure wore a black and red organic bodysuit, with a silver helmet covered in dark glass.

The figure descended slowly, as everyone in the room, aside from Sora's unconscious friends, looked at the newborn in either awe, discern, or sinister triumph, such as Master Xehanort.

The dark figure summoned a Keyblade; it looked almost identical to Sora's Kingdom Key, but it was gold with a silver handle.

"The Kingdom Key D, essential to the realm of darkness," Xehanort said. "Empty creature from Sora riven... to you, the name Vanitas shall be given."

Vanitas nodded. "Yes, Master."

Master Xehanort looked back to Xemnas. "I suppose I won't be needing the X-blade, after all."

"What do we do with them?" Zexion asked, referring to Sora and the girls.

"We'll keep Sora, Amaya, and Claire around. They'll be a backup plan. If the Kingdom Key D doesn't work in my favor, I'll use them to bring about another Keyblade war to forge the X-blade."

"And, this young girl here and Princess Kairi?" Fuu asked.

Xehanort smirked. "Kill them."

Whatever.