[size=1](The culmination of "Search for Truth.")[/size]

A new world, one that had never been open to exploring Interferences before now. It was the Keyblade Graveyard, a world of incredible significance to the Kingdom Hearts universe. Unfortunately, very few people in the universe fully understood how significant it was.

Alexander Karsath beamed down to a Save Point and looked around. He was situated on a small outcropping of rock, looking over a cliff into a barren vista almost a mile below. The landscape was vast and empty, but it was also heavily damaged. Craters dotted the plains below, while gaping holes were visible in the torn-up mountains on the horizon.

Upon seeing this, Alex's first thought was: [i]Something big and important happened here, alright...[/i] It was humbling how much damage there was.

However, there were no Keyblades around him. He wasn't in the iconic desert graveyard with the rows and rows of discarded Keyblades. But there was a rocky path into a canyon in the distance... was the graveyard itself on the other side?

[hr]
But the Original Interference wasn't the only one named Alexander to appear in the world. His evil version, one from an alternate universe gone awry, beamed down to the world as well.

He was much closer to the graveyard than the real Alex. In fact, he was on a cliff overlooking the whole mass of Keyblades. He could even see the tall plateau in the distance, the one that had risen from the ground in the epic battle with Xehanort.

Clapping his hands and placing them on himself, the alternate Alex transmuted the armor so that it fell away from his body, leaving only his clean, normal adventuring garments.

He took another deep breath to calm himself, and scanned over the desert. His temporary allies Dalton, Ignis, and Loki had come here ahead of him. All he had to do was to find them... and wait to spring the trap.

====

Another beam came down after Alexander, and from it Audrey Jones appeared. As the Dream Mage stepped out, she looked around the area and frowned. With all this damage done, she couldn't imagine what really transpired here.

[i]'How powerful were the people here when they fought?'[/i] Audrey thought to herself. Spotting the Original Interference nearby, she walked over and asked, "So, where do we go from here?"

~*~

Ignis Fatuus had taken the time to get acquainted with the area in the meantime. He had been wandering the desert, stopping by the graveyard once to have a good look at it. He had to admit, he was rather intrigued.

But the Nightmare Illusionist was not here to study the history of this world, or the rest of the worlds. He could really care less for that. All he wanted was for the damn girl to be brought to him. Yes, the man knew this obsession was pathetic by now, but this was how he was born.

Before he could mull over the thought even more, he suddenly snapped his head up. There was silence...until the man grinned to himself, his red eye brightening. He could feel her presence. Soon, he would get his chance.

====

Loki stood in silence at the edge of the keyblade graveyard. In a flash of light Yggdrasil’s Ruin appeared in his right hand as he looked out over the keys that were all that remained of those who fell during the keyblade wars. He felt something when looking out a sense of sadness reserved for those who had held keyblades before him. He was still unsure why Yggdrasil’s ruin had appeared to him but he was sure he would find out sometime in the future if he did enough searching. Maybe the secrets lay within this place. A monument to those who had fallen fighting to preserve the light.

But now was not a time to dwell on the past and its relation to the present. He had a service he needed to render to Alexander in return for his keeping his promise. Soon enough the Interferences would arrive, and his skills would be put to the test. His left hand checked to make sure the hood was in place, and underneath his pupiless green eyes glowed brighter then normal. He was ready to show the power of the Aether to the Interferences; show them what was in store for them on the road ahead. The question was were they ready?

====

Sorin appeared behind Audrey and looked over where they had landed.  [i]So much damage.  Just why were they fighting?[/i]  Sorin thought as he rested a hand on the hilt of his katana.

====

Neo emerged from the save point after Sorin. He have seen the Keyblade Graveyard in videos before back in the real world, but this, this was different. There were no keyblades, but then again this was just one part of this world. Neo already had his Dragon's Blade out, resting upon his right shoulder much like some characters he knew.

"There is nothing here, yet..." He looked around. "it still feels as if war and death came over this place." He knew this feeling, it was similar to the Capital Wasteland when he and Sly Cooper went there. Yet there were no Raiders...or Mutants...or Enclave.

====

Dalton's forces finished their preparations. His men and their weaponry were hidden and only waiting the signal of their leader.

====

The alternate Alexander (AlternAlex, perhaps) took notice of his three allies out in the wasteland. They were scattered somewhat, but it would not take long to bring them together.

It appeared Dalton and his army had already found a spot for ambush, so that's were they'd draw the line. Loki would help distract the others, while Ignis and himself would draw their targets forward and deal with them each one-on-one.

AlternAlex jumped down into the desert, landing gracefully. He started walking toward where Dalton's forces were camped, knowing his movements would be obvious enough that his allies would take notice and follow his lead to regroup.

[hr]
Alexander looked back, seeing that most of the group was with him and ready to go. In response to Audrey's question, he looked toward the path to their right - a narrow, rocky road that led into a canyon in the distance.

"I think this is the only way forward," he said. They were high above ground level - the outcropping and the path were bordered by steep, [b][i]steep[/i][/b] drops into the torn-up valley below. Without taking a thousand-foot drop, the path into the canyon was their only option.

"Well..." he said nervously, "let's go." And he started to walk.

====

And indeed, Ignis had caught AlternAlex's movements out of the corner of his eye. However, he didn't go about following him. In the direction he was headed, he could just go ahead of him.

So the dark pyromancer was gone in his fireburst in one moment, and in the next, he reappeared the same way by Dalton's forces. He might've startled a few of the soldiers; not like he cared. He wanted to get this over with. And so Ignis stood there, waiting as patiently as he could.

~*~

Audrey noted the narrow path, and just how high they were. Her stomach churned and she felt slightly dizzy. Of all the times to not be able to fly anymore...

She shook her head quickly, trying to keep her composure. The girl had to be prepared for anything, in case a trap would be sprung on them. So without a word, she slowly followed after Alex, trying to watch her step, as well as keeping her eyes away from the steep drops. Pretty hard to do when you're watching where you're going.

====

Mary jumped down from the canyon wall and landed behind Alex. "I scouted the path ahead... Guys, I think you really need to see this." She ran ahead of the three, holding a kunai in each hand. She already knew the possibility of there being a trap and was confiden in her speed.

====

Neo looked to Alexander and nodded. He wasn't that scared of heights originally, and thanks to his training with Sly Cooper when he first arrived in this universe, his fear was completely gone and that stomach turning feeling when one looked down was gone as well since he did most of his time in high places back then.  "Let's go. Just don't look down, but remember we need to keep an eye out." He said loud enough for everyone in the group to hear as he followed Alexander and Audrey.

At that time, Mary showed herself yet again. Apparently she saw something that they need to see up ahead. Neo nodded to her as she ran ahead of the group. He looked to Alexander and the other Interferences, giving a short nod before he went into a run to follow after Mary.

====

"Not even five minutes and there is already a problem."  Sorin said with a sigh as he fully drew Battosai and ran after Mary and Neo.  While like Audrey he couldn't fly anymore, if the height and the drop was bothering him he wasn't letting it affect him.

====

In a burst of multicolored lights Loki disappeared and reappeared in the same burst of multicolored lights Near the troops. He did not want to be among them because he would need more room when it came to his spell casting, and killing off the fodder was counterproductive to the cause. Let the Interferences wear themselves down before he blasted them away with the Aether.

He would simply wait for his moment then he would make sure to prevent the others from going after Audrey and Alexander. It was a simple enough task, as long as none of them made it past Dalton, himself and Daltons troops they would all be fine, and if necessary he could try and call nobodies to help hinder them further. But he still needed to play around with his new ability. For now he would wait till the trap was sprung.

====

Alexander was a little confused. "Wait, what? What do we need to see?" he asked, but everyone had already started to run. Was it the graveyard itself? What were they headed toward?

Eventually, they reached the end of the rocky path and entered the canyon proper - a giant trench with high rock walls on all sides of them. It spanned a great distance, creating a massive clearing before it narrowed into a smaller path again. There were heavy winds within the trench, creating small dust tornadoes throughout.

So far, so empty. What [i]was[/i] it they were looking for?

[hr]
AlternAlex approached Dalton's troops, noticing Ignis and Loki nearby. "Perfect. Everyone's here. And it seems our enemies come closer every minute."

He went over the plane very quickly with them. First, they'd have to separate Audrey and Alexander from the rest of the group. Second, Loki and Dalton's forces would have to engage the remaining Interferences so that they'd be incapable of reaching the other two. Finally, Ignis and Alexander would have to take their own targets elsewhere to have their battles.

He looked to Ignis. "The key is the separation. I have an idea for taking my target away, though. How about yourself?"

====

As they reached the canyon, Audrey allowed to breath out, no longer having to worry about the narrow path. Of course, then she had to squint her eyes from the winds, trying to keep some of the sand away from her eyes.

The Dream Mage frowned at the emptiness around them. However, she wasn't fooled. If this were a trap, they'd have to watch for anything. However...she couldn't help but feel a sense of worry over this whole thing. Something felt...wrong...

~*~

Ignis nodded to AlternAlex as he approached, giving a small smirk. Finally, they'd be able to get this over with. He could feel that the heroes would be nearing soon; he already had an idea on how to settle this.

"I have a plan for my own target, yes," he replied to the villainous alternate. "I'm going to attempt to trap her in one of my illusions while remaining out of sight. Once I lure her forward, I'll trap her and take it from there."

====

Most of the soldiers were going to shoot their Commander's allies.

"I wanted to suggest a bombardment with my forces' cannons to separate them." Dalton commented to his allies while showing them a few [Url=http://www.chronocompendium.com/Term/File:Home_termina_bridge.png.html]cannons which seemed to be made of some brass-colored metal[/Url].  Strangely, alchemists were with the siege engineers. "They gave an special effect to the ammunition, like weapons hurled around the explosion site, a more powerful explosions thanks to an unstable transmutation or a high electrical discharge." he explained them.

[To justify, in the first anime there was a weapon able to do that electrical attack by draw 4 lightining bolts on the ground, the weapons could be Basque Grand's alchemy technique but I'm using more the idea from the Silver Alchemist from the second anime, and the idea behind the powerful explosion is related to Kimblee's signature attack and its explanation from the manga]

====

Mary looked back at the others and stopped. "It's farther ahead. And stay together. I don't like this silence." She edged closer to the path to the next area and looked ahead. Once Mary was sure that it was safe enough, she waved at the others to follow her and moved ahead.

====

Even if it looked like it was safe Sorin didn't really believe.  There was many different kids of abilities that could hide someone from them.  Still at the moment all they could do was be careful as they went to where Mary was talking about.

====

"Quiet, too quiet, eh?" Alexander mused. But he knew well enough how easy it was to create an ambush in this universe. The Heartless and Nobodies were capable of disappearing into their respective realms for a while, waiting for someone to enter an area of battle.

But they weren't exactly worried about common enemies here.

The next area was a somewhat wide clearing, with very little in the way of features within it. The path ahead continued to narrow, though, until only the smallest of ravines opened up into the vast desert beyond. Through the fissure, Alexander could almost barely see...

"Holy crap," he said suddenly. "Do those look like Keyblades to you?" He pointed through the fissure opening in the distance, noting the barely visible shapes sticking out from the sand.

[hr]
"[i]Very[/i] nice," the alternate remarked in regards to the heavy artillery. His first impression of Dalton had to go under review - he was turning out to be much more clever than he'd given him credit for. "Just wait until Ignis and I remove our targets before you start shooting. And Loki, you may want to stay on the sidelines for a while to avoid friendly fire..."

And without warning, he stopped and turned around. He looked toward the canyon about a mile to the south, where a tiny fissure was visible in the canyon wall. He took a deep breath to steady himself, and smirked.

"Places, everyone!" he announced. "The show is about to begin!"

====

Audrey frowned and squinted her eyes to see through to the fissure. She could barely make out the shapes ahead, though she could see that it looked like weapons sticking in the ground. Considering this place was called the [i]Keyblade[/i] Graveyard, that wouldn't be too surprising.

"They might be..." she mused. "Maybe we should take a closer look?"

~*~

Ignis grinned as he heard AlternAlex's announcement. Everything was falling into place now. And so far, no one had randomly popped up to stop them yet. Perhaps everything would go according to plan after all.

The Nightmare Illusionist took his place behind a boulder, peering out from the side. He'd be hard to spot this way, but he'd be able to catch his target once she came into view. He had the perfect bait to lure her in with, too. She probably won't even complain in the end.

====

Loki nodded when he heard Alexander. He had no intention of jumping into the front lines. He was a after the first strike kind of fighter, that and a mage he would need some time to prepare something big for his entry strike so he began to walk back a bit farther, he would need some time to prep an attack that would come after the first strike, and after his attack he would begin fighting the Interferences.[color=Red] “Ok Alexander. Ill be ready for after the fireworks.”[/color] With that Loki disappeared in a flash of lights to a spot a bit farther back so he was not in the range of any friendly fire.

Loki then began to gather the Aether for his initial strike. He would wait till Alexander and Ignis had grabbed there targets then he would strike.

====

"Holy shit..."  Sorin muttered as he looked over the vast Keyblade graveyard.  There had to be tens of thousands of Keyblades out there.  The amount of people that had died in whatever battle they fought had to be huge.  "Yeah...let's go check it out."

====

Alexander swallowed, hesitating... and then started walking forward.

The fissure was pretty long and narrow, forcing the group to advance through it one at a time to avoid being squeezed in. But finally, it opened up to the vast desert, where the group could feel the wind blow across the flat plain.

Sorin hadn't been too far off the mark. Tens of thousands of Keyblades, as far as the eye could see. All stuck with their blades in the ground, sticking straight up like tombstones.

Curious, Alexander reached for one of the embedded Keyblades and pulled at it. It came out of the ground with some effort. It was a golden blade with some strange symbols he didn't recognize. But the blade was heavy and off-balance. It really felt dead - as though its wielder's energy had left it completely.

Strange, the mysterious Keyblade at his waist didn't feel quite dead...

He carefully replaced the Keyblade into the ground and looked forward at the path, defined by the rows and rows of Keyblades on either side. The famous crossroads was about a mile ahead.

With no other clues, Alexander decided to keep walking forward.

====

After squinting her eyes to avoid any sand getting caught, Audrey looked in awe at the thousands of Keyblades all around them. It must have been one hell of a war, if all of these weapons belonged to the people who fought. The Dream Mage traced her hand against the handle of another, not really bothering to pick it out of the ground like Alex had. What kind of properties would this one have, she wondered to herself.

She shook her head; now probably wasn't the time to think on that. Noticing that Alexander was moving forward again, Audrey followed after him. With each step she took, however, anxiety came onto her and increased each time. Why was she feeling this? Yeah, they could be walking into that trap any second now, but with them expecting it, nothing would go wrong...would it?

====

"This is what I wanted to show you guys." Mary said, looking at the thousands and thousands of Keyblades littered all around them. "I got here first and scouted the area. When I found this place, I searched for you guys. Isn't this that place you went to with Louis, Alex?"

====

Once he was actually in the graveyard Sorin just looked around at the hundreds of Keyblades.  Standing around all the blades just made Sorin nervous.  He didn't like standing around here.  And it just wasn't the potential of a trap that made him nervous.  There was just something about this Keyblade Graveyard that Sorin didn't like.

====

Alexander groaned at the most recent mention of the Disney Castle incident. Answering her question honestly, he said, "I don't quite remember exactly where it took place. Though I'm pretty sure it wasn't here in this graveyard, but rather somewhere else..."

He sighed. "I can accept something like Terra's lingering spirit being here, but I still don't buy the idea of there being a Lockshield spirit out there with all of my abilities and more. I'm honestly beginning to think it's a conspiracy!"

[hr]
The alternate Alexander visibly calmed down as the group came closer to the ambush point. It was always this way with him - he'd fret right up to the moment, but when the time actually came for action, he became perfectly confident...

"[i]Haste[/i]. [i]Protect[/i]. [i]Shell[/i]." One after the other, he applied the various buffing magicks of Ivalice onto himself.

"[i]Vanish[/i]." Almost perfectly invisible thanks to the final spell, he stepped out onto the path, straight in front of the group.

[hr]
Alexander stopped suddenly. Something new had appeared in front of the group.

It appeared to be... a standalone aura of dark energy, rising from the ground and gathering around a single point. Hold on, there seemed to be an invisible silhouette outlined by the energy!

Alex summoned his Lockshield, but he couldn't quite move fast enough.

"[i]Warp[/i]." The voice sounded much like his own.

Multicolored light surrounded both him and the invisible figure before they both vanished into thin air.

The trap had been sprung.

====

As soon as he saw the group, Ignis grinned to himself. The time has come now. Pushing back the bangs away from his red eye, he stepped out just a bit, still remaining hidden, but now facing the heroes' direction. The Nightmare Illusionist waited for the opportune moment before he would lure in his target.

He noted the invisible AlternAlex now approaching them. He would wait after he caught the Original Interference; it would probably be enough to catch everyone off-guard, and for him to spring his own trap. Just a bit...

There! As soon as the two vanished, his eye gave a flash, towards the Dream Mage's direction...

~*~

Audrey took a stance as she saw the invisible figure. She would have summoned her sword then, should a fight have started. Instead, she gasped in surprise as both the figure and Alexander disappeared.

"Alex!" she yelled out. Too late; they were both gone. But that voice...it couldn't be. The girl looked up...right when a flash came before her eyes.

She felt someone grab her hand then. She blinked, but before she could ask, she was then dragged by the arm. "What the--"

"He's probably over there. Come on, we have to hurry."

It was Sorin's voice. He was the one dragging her over. Or at least, that's what she thought. In reality, it looked like Audrey was running off on her own. But before anyone could chase after her, a wall of black flames suddenly formed, preventing anyone from doing so.


As they were far enough, 'Sorin' stopped all of a sudden. He released his grip on Audrey's hand. The Dream Mage blinked, looking up to her love. What was going on...?

"Sorin, what is it...?"

No reply. At least, not for a bit. He then turned to her...and grinned sadistically.

"Pathetic girl..." 'Sorin' whispered...except now it wasn't his voice. It was deeper...familiar...

Her eyes went wide.

"Ignis!"

'Sorin' disappeared then, the illusion broken. Now standing there was her arch nemesis, the former counterpart of her brother Stephan Shepherds. Before Audrey could react any further, he suddenly whipped his arm out, grabbing her by the throat.

"Hello again, my dear Audrey."

Just as Audrey struggled, the black fireburst surrounded them. And then it was gone, the Nightmare Illusionist and the Dream Mage taken with it.

====

With the disappearance of their allies, the obvious question rose in Dalton's troops. "Your orders, Commander?". Dalton smiled while touching one of the cannons. "What else..."

From the point of the Interferences, an exclamation was heard. [B]"FIRE!!!"[/B] Loud explosions came after that from various points of the Graveyard, and a rain of alchemical shells going in the Interferences's direction.

[Use your imagination, everyone. Meaning, you can choose what the rounds will do. Also, the ones send by Dalton will summon Golems on the impact zone.]

====

Loki smirked as he watched Alexander and Ignis grab the ones they both desired to get rid of. It was such a wonderful sight when the first faze of a plan went off without a snag. Now came the challenging part. Dalton was already on the offensive. The explosions did look beautiful. The question was how to make sure he hit them all… Wait? Didn’t the horsemen blow up his premature seeds? What if he did something in a similar capacity except removed the fail safe from the seed that sent those hit by it to another world…

Loki closed his eyes and raised his left hand and slowly began to mold a bomb out of the Aether around himself, and within him. This would take a few minutes… and he doubted it would be stronger then a few Aether blasts but it would be enough to open up after Dalton’s strike was over, and it would rapidly gather energy up until the moment it went off. Although it would be nice to display a bit of his power. As he finished putting as much energy into the ‘bomb’ he moved it so that it was above the battlefield. He then triggered it, which caused it to start cycling through colors rapidly. It would go off momentarily, but for now they were safe from his opening move.

====

"Shit!"  Sorin cursed as the attack had started.  Without his old speed and ability to create Dark Corridors Sorin was at a pretty bad disadvantage.  Sorin spotted the canons firing.  Right now there was only way to protect himself.

"Eclipse!"  Sorin shouted as he created the barrier around him.  It strained as he protected its user from the canon fire.  But it still managed to protect him but that kind of blast was impossible to reflect back at the user.

Still with no way to follow Alex or Audrey the best bet was to take out the attackers so Sorin ran toward the source.

====

While the battle raged on below, the two Alexanders reappeared (of all places) on top of the massive plateau ahead. Shaking himself from the disorientation of Warping, Alex quickly took stock of his surroundings.

The plateau was relatively small (about 100 yards across) and almost perfectly flattened. A perfect place for a battle, given that they were on top of a freaking [i]mountain[/i]. Already, Alexander could feel tension as he stood on ground that had been hallowed by a fateful encounter.

A shot rang out in the nanosecond Alex had been distracted, and a powerful force from behind knocked into his back and sent him stumbling forward. His magicked garments once again protected him from serious injury, but the damage had still been done.

Collecting himself and bringing up the Lockshield to defend, he turned toward the source of the shot. But almost instantly, he found himself deflecting an attack from a heavy weapon... wait, was that a [i]shield[/i]!?

The attacks kept coming. In the rush, Alexander couldn't take in many details. But he did recognize the shape and structure of the weapon attacking him, as well as the general form of his assailant, who was now visible.

There was more confusion, but Alex matched the attacker blow for blow in a barrage of defensive maneuvers, before one identical clash sent them both stumbling backwards.

Alexander Karsath recovered quicker than his opponent, and finally got a good look at who he was dealing with.

His breath stopped for a moment, before his expression contorted with rage.

"Oh. That's just [i][b]GREAT[/b][/i]!!!"

====

Away from the graveyard, another burst of black fire had appeared in a circular area. Ignis Fatuus and Audrey Jones had reappeared, the latter finally releasing herself from the former's grip. She scowled after landing on the ground, rubbing her neck where he grabbed her.

"What the hell are you doing here now, Ignis?" the Dream Mage asked, almost snapping. "Are you working for whoever it was that took Alex?"

The Nightmare Illusionist smirked, the Thunder Rod appearing in his grip, again in black flames. "In a sense. I only seized an opportunity with the Alternate Alexander."

Audrey grunted, surprised. She had met AlternAlex before, if it was the same one Ignis was talking about. She knew what he wanted; she was there when he explained it all. From the looks, it seemed he was going to reach his goal after all.

"Looks like you've fallen even lower, then!" Audrey taunted, returning the man's smirk. "You don't even know the fact that you aligned yourself with a [i]suicidal freak!"[/i]

Ignis merely 'hmph'ed in response. "What does it matter to me? All I want is your life; I care nothing for what happens with either Original." He held up his staff then. "Enough talk. [i]Tempest!"[/i]

Electricity crackled from the orb of the staff. Thankfully, Audrey managed to roll out of the way right when the lightning strike came down. Still with a smirk on her face, she leapt to her feet and summoned the Destiny Sword in her hands, ready for round two with her nemesis.

"If you want my life that badly, come and get it then!"

And so their fight began.

====

Like Sorin, Mary cursed as the attack started and took refuge in the Solar Samurai's barrier. "Alex and Audrey are gone." She said, following Sorin to the source of the attack and possibly their attacker. "Let's see if our opponent knows where they have gone to."

====

[Somehow, I feel my post was ignored. Oh well...]

From the ground, hidden troops ambushed Sorin and Mary, while others gave backup to the Nightmare Illusionist.

====

"Out of the way!"  Sorin shouted as he activated Solar Flare and already slashing his way through Dalton's soldiers.  The Samurai didn't stop as staying to focus on these enemies would let the canons  to continue to bombard them.  Right now those were the biggest threats.

====

Apparently, his alternate wasn't one for mid-battle banter. Their shields clashed time and time again, neither one letting up in strength and speed.

They both got the same idea to back out of melee range and switch to attacking from afar. Alexander pulled out his Morph Gun and aimed the Blaster at his alternate.

The alternate looked down at his pistol for a second, then started running as Alexander fired.

AlternAlex didn't seem to have the Quick Run ability, yet he was moving with surprising speed. Whenever Alex would compensate, the alternate would simply switch directions. His momentum seemed really weird as well - it seemed more like time had-

"Dammit!" Alex put away the Morph Gun and blocked a pistol shot before switching to the Time Fracture. "[i]Chronos Break[/i]!" When time resumed, the alternate Alexander had a fresh wounds all over his body. The young man stumbled to the ground, and Alex raised up his shield to finish the job...

"[i]Curaga[/i]."

There was a puff of smoke that enveloped the alternate's body, leaving a large rock behind. Some distance away, AlternAlex reappeared, his wounds mostly healed.

Alexander scowled and readied himself. If this guy had his abilities (and more), this was going to be a tricky fight...

Unfortunately, that was the only thought he could manage before AlternAlex attacked again. Clearly, he wasn't going to give Alex a break.

====

In the midst of their fight, Audrey saw the rounds coming her way. She did her best to dodge...but it seemed that was the point, as the ground where the shots hit instead started to rise. The girl yelped as she nearly lost her balance; her palm met the ground and supported herself by flipping back to her feet rather than landing on her back unceremoniously.

Unfortunately, that was when she felt a sweltering heat behind her. Ignis had taken the time to conjure up a black fireball while she had been distracted by the rounds, aiming for her back. Audrey jumped to the side at the very last moment. Or so she thought; while the fireball missed and hit the risen rock before her, it still grazed by the back of her coat, enough to set it aflame. The Dream Mage quickly removed her coat before she would suffer any burns. There went an awesome piece of clothing...

There was no time to mourn for that. Audrey held up her sword just before Ignis would impale his staff into her. She grit her teeth as the man tried to break down her defense, doing her best to hold her own.

"You seem to be slipping, my dear," Ignis taunted, smirking down at her the entire time.

"Shut up..." Audrey growled out.

He chuckled. Still so easy to provoke, it seems. Poor girl really hasn't changed. "You haven't forgotten last time, have you?"

"I SAID SHUT UP!"

Her sword charged as she screamed out, pushing the staff away in an instant. Audrey jumped back to her feet and made to slash as Ignis stumbled back...only for him to teleport in his usual fireburst, reappearing behind her. He made to swipe at her back, but she whipped around right away, instead going in another clash with her.

"Like I said, you've been slipping," he said again, mockingly as usual.

====

Mary followed after Sorin, using her Fireball jutsu to burn down the soldiers that stood in their way. She threw four kunai, taking down to soldiers that were farther ahead.

====

After Mary's Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique [Katon: Gōkakyū no Jutsu] and kunais, the Porre's Sargents gave the Privates first aid with little fountains of Blue Element, created from their Cure Elements.

In front of Mary and Sorin, shell willl crash on the ground and behind them, the soldiers began to shoot.

====

He tried casting magic.

"[i]Lightning[/i]!" A lightning bolt crashed down onto the alternate, but the strange new shield he was holding up seemed to all but negate the damage entirely. Alexander switched to the Heartless Seal, casting Blizzaga, Thundaga, Firaga, and even Magnega. They did a little, but not nearly as much damage as they were supposed to.

When his barrage was done, the alternate took things into high gear. He summoned the strange misty energy again and muttered, "[i]Scathe[/i]." In front of him, three points of light appeared and revolved around a central point, forming a circle. Within the circle, a great mass of bright energy built up for a few tense seconds before firing.

It was all Alexander could do to cast Reflega to protect himself for the duration of the Black Magick. The beam flew past him and followed through off the cliff. Everyone down below could see the massive destructive beam for a moment before it faded away.

With most of his magic gone, Alex used Curaga to heal up and wait for his magic to recharge.

It seemed that, as a magician, he was far outclassed.

So he tried going hand-to-hand.

Alexander used a Quick Run to rush toward the alternate and start throwing punches in the aftermath of the spell. He'd reacted quickly enough that the alternate was caught a little off guard. Alex threw a few punches to the alternate's face to send him stumbling, then grabbed him by the neck and started throwing punches and kicks into his stomach.

But then he disappeared in another puff of smoke, temporarily blinding Alexander. Before he knew it, he'd been grabbed by the back of his jacket and thrown. He landed ungracefully and tried to get back up, before the alternate was in his face again.

A kick sent him reeling backward, but he recovered quickly. He tried to dodge a punch and counterattack, but the alternate's attack speed suddenly skyrocketed, throwing a blinding flurry of punches that would've been humanly impossible to pull off, keeping Alexander suspended in midair for a few agonizing seconds before one final kick sent him flying backward.

Alex was stunned for a few seconds, coughing violently. If this had been any normal boss fight, this would've been the moment where Alexander staggered to his feet while his opponent gloated over how superior a fighter he was. But this was no normal opponent.

Within a second, AlternAlex had crossed the distance and planted himself on top of Alexander, pinning him down and grabbing his neck in a chokehold. The alternate re-summoned his Lockshield...

...and proceeded to stab Alexander's chest. Repeatedly.

His screams echoed down to the valley below.

====

Audrey heard Alex's cries, bringing her to snap her head up. Unfortunately, Ignis took the distraction and kicked her way, following with a sweep of her legs. He held the Thunder Rod out as she fell, casting Tempest once again.

Just before she was struck, a magical shield formed from her magic energy, the lightning rebounding right back at Ignis. He tried to teleport out of the way in time, but his own spell struck the rod, the electricity going to him and stunning him in place. Audrey, having leapt back up, ran at the Nightmare Illusionist and threw in a few slashes, ending with a uppercut that sent him in the air. The Dream Mage used the risen ground to her advantage, quickly jumping to one and then off. Reaching her nemesis, she sent in more quick and powerful slashes, and then finished off with a greatly charged slash to send him crashing back to the ground.

As she came down, Audrey pointed her sword down, ready to impale him on the spot. It was time to finish this. Right when she reached the ground, however...he was suddenly gone. Not in the usual black flames or anything else. Just gone. Audrey frowned, her sword stabbing the ground instead. Where did he...?

"Above you."

She snapped her head up. Ignis was in the air, seeming to have teleported, and threw his now flame-coated staff down at her. Audrey rolled out of the way in time, unfortunately leaving her sword behind. However, she didn't expect columns of black flames to suddenly spread out. She screamed out as she was caught in one of the columns, dealing some nasty burns. She tried to use her magic, either Vita or Quiesco to heal up. However, a white glow came about her, taking away her strength. He had used that Halve MP spell on her again, leaving her with very little to really cast a spell.

Having landed right next to her, Ignis grabbed her by the shirt, lifting her up. He grinned, and then used the same trick he pulled before. Fire exploded from his hand, sending the girl flying and then skidding back violently against the ground.

He had the upper hand in this fight.

====

Sorin kept ignoring the shelling as the focus was to get to the canons.  "Aurora!"  Sorin called up using the last bit of his magic to create two multicolored vortexes one to each side of the enemies in front of him.  The vortexes would pull the infantry into them, which should help open a path right to the canons.

====

The pain became too much. It was unbearable, driving him to the brink of death, much like... VERY much like...

"[b]GrrrRAAAAAAAH[/b]!" A explosion of dark energy forced the alternate off Alexander as he violently entered his Anti Form. Pain and rage filled him equally while he rushed toward the alternate, ready to return his treatment blow for blow...

Unfortunately, the alternate Alexander had already accounted for this. There were few differences between him and his alternate, and the Anti Form was one such crucial difference. Charging up magick quickly, he reached toward Anti Alexander and intoned, "[i]Dispel[/i]."

A white orb of healing energy struck Alexander... and all at once, the darkness dissipated from his body mid-lunge. Disoriented by the fundamental biological change, Alexander ended up sprawling on the ground in front of the alternate instead of hitting him.

The alternate knelt next to the weakened Interference and prepared to deliver the final blow... but then stopped.

And smirked. "That's right..." he mumbled to himself, reaching for the black Keyblade at Alexander's waist.

====

Audrey summoned her sword back in her hand, using it to push herself off the ground. She grit her teeth from the burns on her body; why the hell did she forget to stock up on Ethers?! If she had known she was going to into an individual fight against her enemy, she would have done so before she met up with Alexander.

As she was back on her feet, Audrey looked up to see Ignis just standing there, waiting for her move. The Dream Mage growled under her breath. She was sick of this bastard, sick of everything he was doing, what he was putting her through...just sick of him. She wanted him out of her life forever. So, ignoring the pain and weakness in her, she cried out and rushed at the Nightmare Illusionist. As she neared, she then jumped and slashed at her enemy from above.

He disappeared again. Like before, there was no indication of his flames bursting; he was just gone. Audrey grunted, but then yelped. A hand had grabbed her by the hair, holding her up. She struggled, tried to slash with her sword from there, but then yelped again as fire burnt her sword hand, forcing her to drop it.

Ignis grinned as he held the girl away from him. Tightening his grip as she continued to struggle, he let out an overly dramatic sigh. "How sad. I really expected so much from you this time, my fellow mage."

"SHUT UP!" Audrey shouted, continuing to kick out and flail. She stopped, however, as she felt a slight burning in her head, making her clench her teeth.

Ignis chuckled darkly to himself. Still with a smirk, he lowered the girl as she stopped in her struggles, just until his mouth was right next to her ear.

"I have a proposition for you, little Audrey," he whispered in her ear. "If you will listen."

Audrey said nothing, still gritting her teeth from the pain. Ignis widened his smirk, and then continued, "I can allow the chance to drop this little endeavor. The hate that I was born with, the quest to take your life...all of it will be forgotten. But only on one condition..."

He then whispered, very quietly, what that condition was. What it was...well, it was enough for Audrey to widen her eyes to it is all I'm going to say. That, and that she clenched her teeth tighter, this time in anger, and curled up a fist.

"F*** NO!" she screamed, aiming to elbow the man in the gut. He moved her away before she could, the girl instead flailing and cursing about. "You sick f***ing bastard! I'll never f***ing do it! Never!"

Ignis merely chuckled again. He knew he'd get that response; it didn't change anything. "Suit yourself then."

He took the two of them away again, this time appearing over a dent on the side of a mountain. The Nightmare Illusionist held the girl out as she continued to struggle against him. And then, fire erupted from his grip, surrounding the girl in seconds.

Audrey's cries were loud, echoing out to the valley below like Alex's had. The agony was so great; she was being [i]burnt alive[/i]. When the flames were gone, the Dream Mage had gone silent. Her whole body was extremely charred, her clothes burned to a minimum. She could barely breathe, having gone into a shock. It was too much for her to even move an inch. Then, her eyes glazed over and she fell in a limp, just hanging there in Ignis' grip.

Ignis Fatuus could barely contain in a mad round laughter. Finally, Audrey M. Jones was finished! His born goal had finally been reached! To make this official, he dropped the girl over the ledge, allowing her to fall to her death.

And fall she did...

[size=1](Nobody try to save her here; I've got something planned for this.)[/size]

====

AlternAlex placed his hand on the hilt of the Keyblade... and immediately, the original Alexander grabbed his wrist. The alternate retaliated by stomping Alex in the back while pulling on the Keyblade. But the way it was positioned and its attachment to Alexander's garments kept that from happening easily.

Alexander shifted and rolled out of the way, shaking the Keyblade out of the alternate's grasp. The alternate responded by promptly kicking him where he lay on the ground. Alex tried to get up and fight on shaking legs, but his alternate self destroyed that notion with a kick to the gut.

The alternate grabbed for the Keyblade again, and almost succeeded at slipping it out of Alexander's grasp. But at the last moment, Alex grabbed onto the hilt and the blade while the alternate pulled back, bringing them into a tug of war over the black Keyblade.

Sensing that Alexander had no strength left, the alternate grinned and pulled back as hard as he could. But Alex wouldn't let go - he kept his grip and pulled enough so that AlternAlex didn't go anywhere. The alternate played a cruel trick and pushed the Keyblade into Alexander's face, sending him stumbling back. But still, Alexander would not let go.

This confused AlternAlex. His counterpart self should have died twice over with the beating he'd taken so far. There was no way he could have so much health...

Then, in a burst of adrenaline and willpower, Alexander wrested the black Keyblade out of his alternate's hands and knocked the enemy back with the Lockshield. He stumbled backward, nearly falling over...

...but now he had two weapons in his hands. The Keyblade in his right hand, and the Lockshield in his left.

Breathing heavily, barely conscious, Alexander quietly groaned and said, "Did I... ever tell you... that I beat Sephiroth?"

====

"Nice job, Sorin." Mary yelled as she ran ahead after he opened the path with his Aurora spell. The female ninja charged ahead, jumping into the air as she dodged the cannon shots and used her Fire Style: Phoenix Flower juts, spitting out several fireballs at the cannons with kunain hidden in the fireballs in case they went out.

====

The alchemists rose a wall against the volley of small fireballs spated out of Mary's mouth. Her Fire Release: Phoenix Sage Fire Technique [JP:Katon: Hōsenka no Jutsu. Hōsenka also meaning "Phoenix Sage Flower"] could make innefective their defense, since Mary can control the flames with her chakra.

====

As Sorin charged he heard the scream.  Audrey's scream.  Sorin was already worried about her but that made him a thousand times more so.  But as helpless as he felt there was little he could do to help her.  He had no idea where she was and she was probably too far away even for his Full Moon to heal her.

Sorin just prayed that she was alright as he activated Solar Flare again and went right toward the canon operators.

====

The sensation of falling several feet had not been caught on by Audrey. The shock had been so great that she had practically gone into a coma. There was no other reaction as she kept falling to her death...

[b]It is not your time yet, Dream Mage.[/b]

~*~

[i]The next thing Audrey knew, she was smacked a good few feet away, slamming onto the ground roughly. She struggled to even sit up, casting Vita on herself. That was the last of her magic now...

Wait...where was she? Hadn't she been fighting Ignis in the Keyblade Graveyard? Now she was somewhere she can barely make out due to the darkness around them. What she was fighting now...she couldn't tell what, but she could see that it was a very powerful being. Some kind of large creature...was it a type of boss Heartless, or a boss in general? She didn't know for sure. If only it wasn't so dark--

A second impact snapped her out of her thoughts. Audrey snapped her head up towards the sound, and promptly gasped. A figure, beaten and brutalized. Even with the darkness around her, she could see who it was. "Sorin!"

Despite the pain, Audrey had forced herself back up to rush to the side of her love. When she reached him, she fell to her knees beside the Solar Samurai. He wasn't moving, barely breathing. "No...no, oh god no, please..."

She tried to cast her spell a second time. Again and again, she tried to heal him, to have him up and ready to fight again. Alas, her magic power wasn't with her. If only she had stocked up on Ethers before coming here...

It was too much for her. The Dream Mage collapsed onto Sorin's chest, burying her face into his shirt. She wept for him, for not being able to help him...for being so useless. She was supposed to use her power to help, and yet she couldn't even save her boyfriend.

"I'm sorry, Sorin..." she choked out, not looking up once...not even as the pink mist of her magic energy had appeared and began to swirl around them. "I thought I could be strong...I thought I could protect you...I'm so sorry..."

The mist began to grow around them, but Audrey still paid no attention. She just continued to cry for her first love, totally convinced that all hope was lost. There was nothing she could do...[/i]

[b]Dreams given form, the Heart longing to soar...[/b]

[i]Audrey looked up as the disembodied voice was heard. Finally, she became aware of the pink clouds surrounding her and Sorin, her eyes widened.[/i]

[b]The magic is strong, the soul is light...[/b]

[i]And then she gasped. A flash of pink energy had enveloped the couple.[/i]

[b]Whatever you imagine can come true.[/b]

[i]The flash was gone shortly after it appeared. Sorin was gone, and Audrey was now back on her feet. Her appearance had altered; she was now in all white. Top, gloves, a mix of a skirt and shorts, and ankle-high boots. Besides the white, the pink clouds that represented her magic were printed on her clothes; they made a sort of wing design on her boots. Suspended around her waist was a flowing pink sash, her magic energy spiraling around it.

Audrey looked down at herself, shocked by the sudden change. What had happened? Why did her clothes change? Where was Sorin? These questions ran through her mind...but not for long, as suddenly, her feet were no longer touching the ground. The Dream Mage gave a small gasp in surprise as she took notice that she was now floating in mid-air. She moved herself back upright and looked down at her feet. There was no magic to indicate this at all; she was just floating on her own. She kicked her feet, as if to experiment with something, and resulted in ascending herself slightly. It was like she was swimming in the air...

Her heart began to race as she realized.

"I can fly..."

For a moment, there was silence. Then, slowly, excitement had built in until she could barely contain it. With a sweep of her arms, Audrey shot herself higher in the air, a stream of pink mist trailing behind her. Tears filled her eyes once again, but this time, they were of happiness.

"I can fly!" she said again, crying it out this time. "I can fly again!"

As she continued to fly, the darkness had given away. The creature that she had forgotten about was no longer there. In place of it all was an abyss, with the familiar pedestal below. Instead of a serene blue, the stained glass image was a bright pink, from the mist once again designing it. Like always, an image of Audrey was in the center, her head up and her eyes looking hopeful. While the outfit she wore now was the same in the image, the coloration was different. It was all red instead of white, the pink clouds were replaced with pink spirals, the wing design no longer on her boots, and the pink sash was tied in a bow on the back of her skirt/shorts. Behind her were two figures, their faces turned away, but she still recognized them. Her love, Sorin No Yami, and her brother, Stephan Shepherds.

Audrey allowed herself to descend onto the platform of her Station. She looked up to the abyss once her feet met the stained glass, expecting the voice to speak to her.[/i]

[b]The form of a Dreamer. A form that has lied dormant within your heart when you accepted the power of Dreams. Your magic is even greater, and you can soar once more, like you have always dreamed of. This form does not last, and will only appear in either a time of great need or with the help of a dear friend. Do you understand?[/b]

[i]Audrey nodded. It was like a Drive form; that was all she needed to understand about it. Even though she was still happy to fly again, she'll remember not to abuse this form too much.[/i]

[b]Then go, Dream Mage. Use your heightened magic to protect yourself and your friends.[/b]

[i]And with that, a flash of light had filled the entire Station...[/i]

~*~

Audrey's eyes snapped open. Pink mist surrounded her, blanketing her completely. And then, she shot back up in the air, with blinding speed.

Ignis grunted as the pink mist started to come his way. Of course, luck was on her side again. He should have known this would happen! Having no other options to fall back on, he sent a fire stream at the mist.

However, the magic shield from before had reflected it away. It then reached the Nightmare Illusionist and collided into him, knocking him over the ledge. It then followed him down, and a barrage of slashes were sent as the sword was summoned. It ended with a powerful charged strike, sending the man down at a quicker pace.

Despite the sudden attack, Ignis was able to teleport back to the ground. He growled, both from the pain and the frustration. She was supposed to die! Why did this always happen!?

The pink mist rolled away as Audrey finally landed on the ground. She was in the white and pink outfit that she had in the dream, an ethereal glow coming about her. She looked at Ignis with cold eyes as she held her sword ready once more.

Ignis was honestly blinded by the girl's new form. He scowled, covering his eyes slightly. "What the hell is that?"

Her answer was simple. "Dreamer form."

Their battle was not over yet.

====

Loki could not help but chuckle as he heard the scream of the woman Ignis was fighting, that would obviously be over soon, ad hopefully Alexander’s battle was getting close to an end also, Loki was almost getting bored not really doing anything. Dalton and company were doing most of the work. But with that in mind he guessed it was time to get to work, the bomb could wait till he needed to leave this place or deal some major damage. He had figured their would be more Interferences here, it seemed their group was much smaller and more manageable.

Multicolored lights glowed around his body and in a moment he was closing in on Sorin. Loki did the first thing that came to mind. He pulled his keyblade back and threw it at Sorin.[i] [color=Red]‘And now the true fun begins.’[/color][/i] He thought with a massive smile beneath the black hood.

====

AlternAlex was getting tired of this.

Before Alexander could blink, AlternAlex pulled out his pistol and fired. The bullet hit Alexander directly between the eyes, sending him stumbling backward. But he didn't fall.

The alternate reloaded and fired another shot, this time blocked by the black Keyblade. Alexander twirled the Keyblade in his hand, while keeping the Lockshield pointed at the alternate.

Then he decided to speak. "You ever... done this before? Held both a Keyblade and Lockshield in your hands?"

AlternAlex became suspicious. "No." He reloaded and fired again, but he was blocked by the Lockshield. "I killed every Keyblade wielder as soon as I was done with them."

"So that's how it is..." Alex muttered, coughing a little.

The floodgates opened between them, and they started to banter in earnest.

"So where did you go wrong? What went differently for you?"
"Saïx recruited me on the fourth day."
"Figures. So you helped out the Organization."
"Even better. After they destroyed Sora, I saw to it that the Organization was destroyed as well, and I took their power."
"And that just started it all, didn't it?!"
"Jack, Lavos, Baron Praxis, Kor, Orochimaru, Vayne Solidor... All critical to defeating the Heartless apprentices, but soon after their power was my own. Which I used to make their worlds better, I'll have you know."
"Oh, I'm pleased as punch."
"I think it did me a lot more good than the heroic route, if you're any indication. Killing your Heartless sister? Dying and living through a time paradox? The [i]Dark Eco Treatments[/i]? Sure, you get a little more power out of it, but is that even worth it?"

Alexander paused. The alternate Alex took the opportunity and charged up a spell. Alexander didn't hear the name, but out of nowhere a great fireball appeared in front of him and immediately exploded, sending him flying back.

AlternAlex rushed forward to finish the job. He was done with this - if his good self couldn't kill him, then it was time to end this charade and see to it that this hero was killed instead.

But then there was a flash of light from Alexander's body. Golden light shone from the black Keyblade and enveloped Alexander, lifting him up into the air and back onto his feet. The glow disappeared, leaving Alexander reinvigorated and restored. He twirled the Keyblade and Lockshield, standing in a fighting stance similar to the one he'd faced Sephiroth with.

AlternAlex stepped backward. This was looking bad for him. "The Keyblade and Lockshield together...?"

Alexander smirked as golden and green light radiated from his two weapons. "If you'd bothered to make any friends, you'd know about this power."

The glow reached its peak, and then Alex rushed forward at a blinding pace.

The alternate Alexander didn't stand a chance as Alexander barraged him with lightning-quick attacks from both weapons. Speed and power that was truly insane came from all sides, while blasts of light and darkness exploded outward from each strike to deliver even more damage. Before long, AlternAlexander was at critical health and stumbling backward. He tried to summon up the Mist for a healing magick, but Alexander wouldn't leave him alone long enough to concentrate.

With one final, glowing attack, Alexander punted the alternate away. AlternAlex landed in a heap, coughing and hacking. A little bit of blood was trickling out of his mouth. It seemed he didn't have the extent of magical protection that Alexander did.

====

If AlternAlex was growing sick of this, Ignis was no better. He wasn't just tired, oh no. The man was absolutely livid that things were going wrong for him. She was rendered completely helpless...and this happens. There were just no words to express his anger; he just panted deeply, barely holding back his rage.

The Nightmare Illusionist truly had enough with this.

The Thunder Rod appeared back in his grip in a burst of flames. Since that damn shield of hers was still up, he had to rely on physical attacks for now. Ignis didn't charge in, however; he knew better than that. He just waited to see what the girl could do.

As for Audrey, she too was getting tired of this. However, she knew she had the upper hand in this. Funny how the roles were switched; she was now the calm, confident opponent, and he the ever-flustered adversary. It almost brought a smirk to her face, but she held it back. She wasn't going to make the same mistake he made with underestimating her.

Since he would not attack, the Dream Mage made the first move. She sent a simple slash, and as expected, it was met with a block. Ignis made to strike with his staff, but then she leapt in the air, now airborne once more. She had charged her sword while doing this, throwing it down for a stab. Ignis quickly jumped back, almost caught in the shockwave as the sword impacted in the ground. He caught the advantage; in a burst of flames, he was behind her, sending a kick at her side.

Right when Audrey was knocked back, she muttered one word, "Apnea."

The pink mist of her magic went into the Nightmare Illusionist. The next thing Ignis knew, he started to choke, his breath sucked away. That was an offensive spell! She was supposed to be a healer!

In the next instant, Audrey flew in, her sword back in her hand. While the man had still been catching his lost breath, she sent another multitude of slashes, at near blinding speed. She then finished it off by slashing through him, landing back on the ground afterwards.

Ignis crashed to the ground roughly. The Luminous Robe, the robe that gave him access to the Halve MP spell, was now completely shredded. The Thunder Rod clattered onto the ground away from him. He groaned, doing all he could to get back to his feet. Managing only to sit up, he weakly held his hand to the staff...only for Audrey to put her foot over it.

"Without your special items, you're only left with your dark fire and illusions," she remarked, her sword once again charging on energy. "You almost had me with both of those, but now? You're as much of a threat as a Shadow." And then she smirked. "How sad. I really expected so much from you this time, my fellow mage."

The sword was brought down. There was an electical crackling for a mere minute as the Thunder Rod was now broken in two halves. The Nightmare Illusionist was left without a weapon now.

====

Alexander approached his fallen alternate, who was coughing and hacking up blood. He positioned the Keyblade above AlternAlex's neck, in order to discourage him from making any sudden moves.

Immediately, AlternAlex looked annoyed, even as he coughed up more blood. Why wouldn't he finish the job and [b][i]kill him[/i][/b]!?

"So how about those answers?" Alexander asked, using words that were casual but a tone that was deadly serious.

It hurt to smile, but the alternate did anyway. Alex had figured out that the 'Lockshield Master' had been him. "I... *cough*... led you to... [i]Terra's[/i] armor and Keyblade..."

The alternate found the Keyblade's tip pressing into his neck. He grinned wider and winced. "Heh... But that only leaves you with more questions, I suppose..." Finally, his evil grin reached its widest length. "[i]Heal me[/i], and I'll give you the most valuable lore imaginable..."

There was a brief second of silence. Alexander raised the Keyblade up... and stabbed it straight into AlternAlex's chest.

"Not happening."

AlternAlexander gasped breathlessly, shuddering at the blade sticking into his body, causing him lethal agony. Slowly, he felt numbness in his body and mind, causing his head to roll back as the life slowly left him.

A small smile reappeared on his face as the numbness consumed the pain. This was it. This was his rightly deserved death. His last breath spent fighting and scheming, beaten by a power that even he could not overcome...

This was perfect.

[hr]
Finally, the alternate's head rolled to the side, lifeless. Alexander removed the Keyblade (which was thankfully bloodless), and stuck it through the sash around his waist.

He looked down at his alternate self, curious but annoyed. It was like looking into a mirror of himself, if he'd aged another year or two without Dark Eco Treatments. And somehow... he looked a bit more sinister, as if his dark actions had affected his neutral expression.

A gust of wind blew across the now-silent plateau, pushing against AlternAlex's lifeless body. The faintest of sounds accompanied the motion, like the rustling of paper...

Alex knelt down and inspected his alternate's body. This was technically looting a corpse, but considering how much trouble this man had caused, it was somewhat justifiable... Alexander searched the pants pockets of his outfit, then the coat pockets. There wasn't much - spare Gummi blocks, a bunch of Elixirs...

Wait...

Alexander pulled out a stack of papers that had been concealed in an inner pocket of the alternate's jacket. It was a hefty document, typed, printed, and stapled together.

On the top of the first page, there was one very surprising title:

[center][b][u]XEHANORT'S REPORT[/u]
Transcript by Alexander Karsath[/b][/center]

====

For the longest time, Ignis did not move from his place. The two items that had been blessed to him by the Horsemen were simply obliterated. Equipment to enhance him as an illusionist. And now they were gone...

...the equipment that was. What that girl didn't know was that the spells he had learned were already engraved into his mind. He needed to work on them without the aid of his robes and staff, but they were still there...

But that was only one bit of victory. Even if they were going to keep fighting, he could tell the others were losing. There was no point in continuing this battle if his allies would not come out safely. So he had to retreat again.

As he still lay there, Audrey had stepped to his side, her sword once again charging energy and preparing to impale him where he was. "You've lost, Ignis," she said, her tone as cold as her look. "Kaztos is waiting for you down in hell. I'm sure he'll be very pleased to see you again."

She let the sword go, letting it stab down...

...just as the man was gone in black flames. The Destiny Sword stabbed into the ground instead. Audrey frowned; figures he would do that. She felt the sweltering heat behind her, and turned her head slightly. As expected, Ignis had reappeared behind her.

"You have won this time, Audrey," he said, his flames surrounding him. As they were gone, his wounds were healed, and his old red and black Organization-esque coat was on his back once more. "But next time we meet, you won't be so lucky. You will accept my offer, whether you like it or not. But until then..." He then pulled out the blue hair strands, taking a small whiff once more. "You better hurry and catch my broken-winged crow before I do..."

And with that, the Nightmare Illusionist was whisked away by his black fire once more. This time, he was gone from the world.

Audrey scowled. She'll never accept his offer, and he won't get his hands on Kalas. She had to warn the one-winged boy later. Right now, she needed to find her friends. She had a little bit of time left in this form; if they were in trouble, then she had to help now.

So, pulling her sword out of the ground, the Dream Mage jumped to the air and started to fly her way back.

====

This was it. As Alexander skimmed through the document, he knew deep down that this contained the answers he was looking for. He'd found them at last...

But the explosions down in the valley reminded him of something more momentarily pressing. The lives and safety of his friends. He ran to the edge of the plateau and looked down on the battlefield, seeing the massive army that had appeared in the graveyard to ambush his friends. Alex gave his alternate's still form one last glance, then placed the document in one of his Etherspace pockets.

...It was a good thing he'd mastered his acrophobia, or he'd never have the guts to do what he was going to do next.

He jumped off. Committed to the one-way plunge from the top of the plateau to the bottom of the valley.

[hr]
A few minutes after Alexander had left, black energy appeared around AlternAlex's body. The same black energy from the machine that had brought him to this universe...

It consumed his whole body, lifting it into the air. But a light shone from his chest, and his Heart floated out of his body and up into the air, not to be seen again. His body crackled with the dark energy and suddenly disappeared, warping back to his original universe.

Alexander Karsath's alternate self had passed on.

====

Sorin spotted the Keyblade and jumped out of the way.  The Samurai then charged toward the black cloak wearing individual.  Anyone who uses a Keyblade would be a dangerous opponent that needed to be defeated fast.  He would leave the canons to Mary as her abilities were bettered suited to taking them out anyway.

====

Sorin would then find himself surrounded by pink mist, which then formed into a magical shield around him. Audrey had rejoined her allies, joining up with Mary against the cannons.

"You can take him on, Sorin," the Dream Mage said to the Solar Samurai. "We'll take out the rest of these."

====

It took the better part of a minute for Alexander to fall the full distance from the top of the plateau to the bottom of the valley.

Fortunately, the landing force wasn't too great, and he was able to land on his feet without so much as stumbling. "Thank goodness for Jump Physics..."

Alex took a second to look at the Keyblade in his right hand. When he did, the word 'Stormfall' came to his mind unbidden, similar to how he instinctively knew the names of his Lockshield designs. So this was the Stormfall Keyblade?

It was a little odd. The Keyblade was a dark blue color and had no keychain. It felt a little heavy in his hands, but not completely lifeless. Did that mean that its original owner was still out there somewhere...?

Still, it seemed to be content to allow Alexander to use its power, much like Sora's Kingdom Key had given him strength once before. It had saved him once, and now he could use it to save his friends.

Taking both weapons in hand, he dashed forward, using Quick Run to flank Dalton's forces from behind.

Soon after, explosions of light and darkness could be seen near the back of the army, sending soldiers flying and making many more flee in terror.

====

Loki could not help but smile as the one he had thrown his keyblade at began the charge towards him. Now this was going to be fun. Two balls of aether energy appeared in both his hands, and he threw them at the solar samurai with the pink mist surrounding him. The two consecutive Aether bolts would merely be useful in testing out what that pink mist did, then he could adjust his battle plan accordingly.

As Loki backpedaled after he threw the Aether bolt’s a flash of light appeared in his right hand as he summoned his keyblade back to him, for when Sorin would get to close.  Hopefully this would be as easy as he was predicting it, but then again this was his first real fight against an Interference since Joseph, so the fight should be a good gauge for how much he improved.

====

The aether bolts were deflected by the shield around Sorin.  Sorin charged in right close and attacked with both weapons at once, katana aimed toward the cloaked figure's head and the katar aimed at his chest.

====

O he hated when they did this. Two weapons at once, that was hardly fair, and it must have taken a lot of skill to do so but Loki was not really in the mood to wonder about the implications of someone who used two weapons at once and how much skill it took. No he was more worried about the one headed for his head and the other going for his chest. This would be a tricky maneuver. His shield did not block attacks of the physical attacks.

A flame of Aetheric energy began to grow at a rapid pace in his left hand. This was going to hurt a hell of a lot. This attack in itself was not meant to be used at a range this close. Loki instantly moved forward and clashed his keyblade with Sorin’s katana, and then thrusted the Aether Blast he had been gathering in his left hand straight into the Katar aimed at his chest. He was not sure how the blast would stop the incoming katar but hell it was worth a shot, and at this range it should at least knock his enemy back shield or not.

====

Meanwhile, Alexander was surrounded by many of Dalton's soldiers. They'd finally gotten their act together and surrounded him. By now, Alex had recognized where this army had come from. The fashion sense, weapon designs, and physical presence of these soldiers were reminiscent of several times and places in Guardia, from Porre to Zeal. But, in the end, that hardly mattered to him. If this army had been rolled out for the sole purpose of ambushing them, they were all enemies.

The cannons weren't too far away now. He just had to make it through these guys, and he could stop the bombardment.

Waving his weapons through the air, he started a magical barrage of fire, ice, and thunder that ripped through the enemy forces. It seemed that Stormfall heavily enhanced magic abilities, and combining with the Heartless Seal Lockshield took that enhancement to absurd levels.

Soon enough, an opening was created in the ranks, leading straight to the row of cannons. Alexander used Quick Run to get through and used a Duo Raid with both weapons to strike the cannon. When he hit, a massive explosion blew him and everyone else back while destroying the cannon entirely.

But, having been through his share of explosions, Alex was quick to re-summon the Lockshield and reacquire Stormfall. Immediately, he went after the next cannon.

====

[Emmm... Alex, I'm not sure if the guys of Squaresoft gave Porre's soldiers a look like you're describing...  Have you checked the images of Chrono Compendium?]

The few forces of Porre that survived the attacks were losing their morale. Who could be able to stop such fighter?

Before Alex was able to attack the next cannon, an old man was surrounded by green energy. He drew his sword and launched a short-ranged  [Url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MNC6juNcA5A]attack[/Url] against him. When he reshated it, his Long Shot Green Element Technique took effect on Alex.

[Url=http://chronocompendium.com/Term/Radius.html]"Radius!!!"[/Url] exclaimed few of the soldiers. "Help the others, I will hold him." was the only thing he said before unsheathing his sword to face Karsath.

[OOC: I will add the Accacia Dragons as Dalton's summons later...]

====

Audrey couldn't help but smirk as she watched Alex jump in to help out. From the looks, it seemed the alternate got what he wanted. Noting that the Original was taking care of the cannons, the Dream Mage flew in towards one of the few surviving groups of soldiers, charging her magic. She had one chance to do this, to help hold off some troops. As she came to a stop, she muttered one word, "Animus."

Her Dream energy had pulsed out from her body, in a wide burst of energy that would be enough to send the soldiers flying back. However, this had been a double-edged sword for the girl. All the extra magic power she had had been used up, and her body was immediately exhausted.

Audrey had passed out in the middle of the battlefield right then. She was out of the fight now.

====

[size=1](I'll go back and edit that bit, Xon.)[/size]

Just as Alexander approached the second cannon (sending the soldiers stationed to it fleeing in terror), he was struck by a spear of light from nowhere, sending him stumbling to the side. "What the...?"

He turned and saw the old man. Was this the leader of the army?! This one didn't look like such a pushover. That didn't affect Alexander's confidence, though - his alternate self had been one of his toughest opponents, and he'd seen victory there with the help of the Keyblade. Even if this man turned out to be the insanely skilled hermit swordsman type, Alexander could give him his money's worth.

But Alex reconsidered. What was a greater priority: keeping this old man off his back, or keeping the cannons off his friends? He was just going to have to play both sides at once.

The Interference quickly turned back toward the cannon and cast several Thundaga spells in quick succession, destroying the cannon in a huge explosion. He then dismissed the Lockshield temporarily to use an Elixir, restoring his health and magic power.

"You wanna stop me?" Alex asked the old man. "Then you gotta catch me!" And with that, he started using Quick Run towards the next cannon.

====

Sorin was knocked back by the explosion caused when the aether came in contact with the Chaos Seal.  Thankfully for him, the barrier Audrey had placed on him earlier was able to absorb most of the damage.

Sorin charged again, this time activating Solar Flare on his katana.  He slashed at the cloaked figure mainly using only his sword and only attacking with his katar at random intervals, when the cloaked figure to be distracted.

====

Radius was unable to catch the quick runner, but still, he wasn't the only one who was aiding with the withdraw...

A bullet wounded Alex slightly on his right cheek, but the next one ended up on his hand. Apparently, the sniper wanted to lost his grip in the Keyblade. Also, this attack could gave Radius the chance to reach Alex's position.

"Stupid sands storms...." the hidden [Url=http://fma.wikia.com/wiki/Rebecca_Catalina]female Amestrian sniper[/Url] complained.

====

The first bullet whizzed past his head, making him stop in his tracks. The second one bounced off the hilt of his Keyblade, nearly making him drop the darn thing. "The hell...?!" Great, so there was a sniper around, the old man was about to catch up with him...

A quick cursory glance revealed Audrey lying unconscious nearby as the battle raged all around them. "Dammit!" Abandoning his idea to take out the cannons for the moment, Alexander rushed over to Audrey and pulled out an Elixir. Not knowing why she was unconscious, he threw the Elixir over her and let it break, hopefully restoring her health and power.

He looked to see if anyone else was trying to head toward him. If he had to defend Audrey [i]and[/i] hold off an old hermit swordsman [i]and[/i] an unknown sniper, this was going to be a tough fight.

At this point, now that they'd gotten what they'd come for, was there much point sticking around at all? Maybe they could retreat. It wouldn't be terribly honorable, but it would mean that this little ambush would be a failure. Alexander sincerely doubted they could kill everyone here and avoid friendly casualties. There was simply too much...

Either that, or they needed a massive, powerful solution. Something in the form of a Luminaire, perhaps...

====

Well this was getting worse and worse. Loki was doing his best to dodge but had already taken a few hits. This was what happened when the mage got involved in a close up fight he guessed. That and his opponent was obviously a much more skilled close up fighter then he was, and he did not have the energy to keep unleashing a near constant barrage of magical attacks… Maybe it was time to get out of here. Alexander was dead, and Ignis had left when he could have at least stayed and helped…

So the best and most logical option was escape and take as many people friendly or hostile with him. Sure it would benefit the Interferences if they survived but he doubted they would escape the explosion unscathed, and Loki was sure Dalton could handle himself… Hi army might end up suffering some casualties but with two of the quartet of villains gone it was every man for himself and Loki needed to worry about his own life and his own plans.

In a flash of Aetheric energy Loki made a short range teleport about twenty feet away from Sorin. The gap should be enough for what he needed to do. [color=Red]“Well I hate to run but I am obviously outclassed here… Till we meet again swordsman.”[/color] In an instant a doorway appeared behind Loki and opened up. Before Loki turned around and walked into it he pointed his keyblade at the seed of Aetheric energy.[color=Red] “Crash and burn…”[/color] He said as the seed began to fall onto the battle field where it would explode, and hurt everything in its path. It would not be anything lethal but damaging enough. But Loki did not intend to wait around and get hit by his own attack, so he exited through the doorway, as the ball of energy hit the ground and traveled out in wave of energy.

====

"What the...!?" [Url=http://fma.wikia.com/wiki/Rebecca_Catalina]Rebecca[/Url] exclaimed before the wave of energy hit her. The toughs of how she end up being enroled in this expedition with thee new ally of Amestris, Porre, were present while she was unconcious.
[Hr]
Dalton witnessed what Loki wanted to do. He required his forces to achieve revenge on the kids of Guardia, so he managed to redirect the damage through his magic and alchemy, at least to let his forces survive the attack. Lamentably to him, this will also help his enemies.

====

Alexander was knocked over by the wave of Aether energy, much like everyone else. Dalton's meddling had reduced the damage of the explosion significantly, but it was still a powerful and disorienting thing.

He looked around quickly and came to a conclusion. They had to get out of here while everyone was down. This battle was over.

Quickly, Alexander got up and picked up Audrey's unconscious body. They had to run for the Save Point, and [i]fast[/i]. They couldn't possibly take out Dalton's army in this state, but they could throw a wrench in Dalton's plans.

"INTERFERENCES!" Alex screamed at the top of his lungs in the silence following the explosion. "WE. ARE. [i][b]LEAVING[/b][/i]!"

Immediately, Alexander dashed forward with a Quick Run, heading directly for the fissure they'd entered from. There had to be a Save Point back there they could use. It was going to be close...