It was dark, too dark to see anything. Axel sat up, pressing a hand against his aching head. It felt as though someone had dropped a ton of bricks on top of him; the pain was intense. "Where am I?" Axel groaned. He couldn't see or feel anything; the darkness was eerily still. "Hello?" he yelled. "Is anyone here?"

Hello.

Axel started in surprise. Had he really heard a voice? He wasn't sure. Weakly, he got up to his feet. One knee ached as he got up; Axel wondered why. "Is anyone here?" He called again.

I am.

Axel knew he heard the voice, but it hadn't come from the darkness. It was inside his head, inside the pain that barraged his skull. Axel turned again, looking at the darkness for any sign of his companion. "Where.. where are you?" He yelled.

I'm right here..Axel.

"How do you know my name?" Axel shouted. His voice didn't echo; the sound slipped into the darkness and was lost.

I know everything about you, Axel.

"That's it!" Axel spread his hands and willed for his chakrams to come to him. But instead of feeling the rush of air and seeing the flames wheels spurt to life in his hands, nothing happened. Axel still there, mentally willing for his chakrams to come. But they didn't.

They won't come to you. Pretty toys, but they won't come.

"Where are my chakrams?" Axel demanded, visibly shaken. "What have you done?" Silence. Nothing moved. "Who are you?" Axel shouted. "What-" Something slammed hard into his chest; Axel was thrown back into a solid wall as the serated blade went straight through him, burying itself in the metal. Axel gasped for air, and then the pain hit. Electricity coursed through him, burning every inch of his body. He felt his insides being burned from the wave of energy. Blood spurted from the huge gap in his chest, and Axel screamed in pain. He writhed against the wall, grabbing weakly at the hilt as if he thought he could pull the huge sword out of his chest. He couldn't. Axel didn't have time to move before someone grabbed his arm, slamming his against the wall. Axel cried out as the unseen attacker slammed the needle through his elbow, through the cartilage and the bone, deep into the wall. Axel felt his bone snapping, felt warm blood oozing out from wound. Before he had time to move, his other arm was forced against the wall, and Axel cried out again as a similar needle was shoved through, pinning him like a butterfly to the wall.

"Why..?" Axel gasped. He could taste blood in his mouth now, felt the warmth of it soaking through his shirt and running down his legs. He couldn't breathe; his ribs strained against the sword in a feeble attempt to pull in air.

Because I want to.

"Why…what…" Axel started again.

We're not done yet. Axel felt burning pain as a serrated knife slashed open his wrists, again and again, laying open the blue veins. He tried to pull in his other wrist, and found that he couldn't. He gasped as the knife hewed open his other wrist. Every pulse of his heart sent more blood pulsing out of the cuts. His veins sprayed out blood. Can you feel the pain, Axel? Can you feel it?

"Stop….please…"

No. Another bolt of energy rocketed through the pyro's body; his backbone stiffened as he shrieked, straining against the instruments pinning his helplessly to the wall. Blood red starbursts exploded in Axel's eyes as he screamed. His spine was rigid with pain, he heard and felt the audible cracking of his ribs as the sheer strength of the force shattered the bones. He gasped for air, the tortured lungs heaving. The energy stopped, and Axel slumped against the wall, sobbing in pain. His bloody chest heaved as he tried to breathe. Good…but not good enough. He thought he heard a footstep, then screamed in pain as a serrated needle pierced his chest. You really only need one lung to breathe anyway. Axel gasped for air, rigid in pain.

"What….." He gasped, trying to be calm. "What…..what do you…"

..Want? Pain, Axel. That's all. Axel felt little stabs of pain as his unseen torturer fastened small hooks in the bloody skin covering his shattered ribcage. And lots of it. Axel felt a ripping sensation, then zigzags of pain as the torturer began pulling on the hooks, peeling the flesh off of him. Axel screamed, struggling. Each writhing movement impaled his body more on the serrated sword, ripping his internal flesh. Blood welled out of his mouth as he screamed. The torturer silently continued pulling , stripping bloody ribbons of flesh off of her screaming victim. Does it hurt that bad? The voice taunted him. More strips of skin tore off. You coward. Axel screamed as the left half of his ribcage was exposed, the white, shattered bones visible through the crimson blood. The hooks released, then plunged themselves into the flesh on his right side.

"Stop.." Axel gasped.

Oh no, Axel. We've still got plenty of skin to peel off. Plenty of blood to spill. The hooks began to strip off the skin. Axel writhed in agony, trying to break free. Blood ran in crimson streams from his mouth, spurted from his wrists, flooded from his stripped torso.

"I…I…" Axel tried to talk, but his voice was drowned out in his own shrieks. There was a sickening ripping sound as more flesh tore loose.

What, Axel?

"I…I hate…" Axel gasped for air. His whole body shook with pain, he was sobbing in agony. He couldn't stop shuddering as the blood gushed free of his broken body. The pain was extreme now; Axel couldn't stop shaking.

Say it, Axel. The hooks dug deep into his flesh, ripping it off of his broken ribs. Blood spilled out, spilled down the pyro's whole body, dying it sticky red. Axel was growing weak from loss of blood, from the overload of pain. He sagged against the wall, shuddering in pure agony.

"I hate you," Axel whispered, too weak to make his voice louder.

Hate won't stop this- another wrenching tear of flesh. You can't defeat me. You fail, Axel. You've lost. Axel slumped against the wall, blood flowing from his mouth to mingle with the streams rushing from his chest. It's over.

"It's over, Axel. Face it. You lost!" Roxas sat on top of Axel's chest, pinning the pyro to the floor, grinning his cheeky grin.

"I let you win!" Axel protested, struggling under his young friend's grip. Roxas smirked.

"It's over!"

"It is not over!" Axel's scream shook the darkness. Strength flooded over the pain, over the searing, agonizing, throbbing agony. Strength to fight back. His arm tore forward, ripping the needle out of the wall. Before the torturer could stop him, he had torn the other needle out of his elbow, freeing his other arm. "I hate you!" Axel shouted into the darkness. His hands found the bloody hilt, he pulled with all his strength. He felt the ripping, tearing feeling of the serrated blade pulling free; he ignored it, straining with all his might. The torturer grabbed the hilt, trying to force the blade back in. For a moment, the blood-stained, crippled Nobody and the unseen foe struggled in the darkness. Then the sword ripping free, out of Axel, and he was free. "I hate you!" Axel shouted again, swinging the blade. He heard a curse, a gasp. That was all he needed. Flames spurted up from the darkness as he swung again and again, hacking down at his would-be murderer.

Axel….you…cannot…win…

"Axel, please! Please…no!" It was a girl's voice, shouting up from the darkness below Axel. She was gasping. "Axel…please…it's…"

Kill! The voice urged him. Just kill! Now! Axel was raising the sword to deliver the final blow when he heard the sobbing, heard the girl's voice.

"It's…me…Axel? Don't you….it's me.." The bloody sword dropped by Axel's hands. He couldn't stand anymore, he was too weak. He knew that voice.

"Larxene?" And Axel fell forward. He hit the floor hard, blood splattering, and just lay there, letting his blood soak the floor under him. He was too weak to move, his consciousness was flickering. He heard a gasping and a scraping noise, then two arms picked him up and cradles his broken, stripped body in her lap. Tears splattered on his blood stained face.

"Axel…I'm so sorry….I didn't…" Larxene was crying. Blood ran from the shallow cuts on her arms and back.

"You?" Axel gasped, trying to speak through the blood. "You…?"

"I didn't know!" Larxene cradled him broken body against hers, his blood soaking through her coat. "Forgive me…I didn't know what I was doing to you…"

"Larxene..?" Axel still couldn't believe it. His heart was fluttering, failing.

"I'm sorry!" Larxene held his body close, crying. "Forgive me…please….Axel…forgive me…" He wasn't talking. "Axel…? Axel…no! Axel, please…please…"

The green eyes were shut.

…So. Did he die..? Or is he still alive? HAHAH! Now you have to read another fanfic to FIND OUT!