The Meteor Shower

Roxas could only groan out in pain as he woke up. Last thing he could remember was falling in midair and then being slammed in the back of the head by Terra. Well that would explain why he couldn't think straight at the moment. It took a few minutes before he could compose himself and got himself out of bed.

The first thing that he noticed was some food placed on a trey nearby his bed along with a Potion and Ether. Roxas pocketed the items and was too hungry to care about the food even if it was poisoned or not.

Besides the human like Nobodies like the Organization and Naminé we're immune to a few types of minor poison and it also helped that they could heal by erasing the damage caused by them. He learned that from Marluxia before he left for Castle Oblivion.

It was some of the best food he could remember besides sea salt ice cream. Considering most of the food at the Organization was bland and, he didn't have that much of a real comparison. Then again Nobodies also didn't need food that much, but he wasn't complaining.

After he was done eating he noticed that it was night out. Roxas was surprised that he was out for that long. But before he could process that he noticed something was going on outside.

"Is that a meteor shower?" Roxas said in awe. He had never seen one before or remembered one from Sora's memories. Although he couldn't get a good look from his room, it was still a spectacle to behold.

"I take it you have never seen a meteor shower before?"

Roxas turned around to face Eraqus who had just entered the room.

"Nope, this is actually my first time." He said honesty. The Keyblade Master just nodded at that before he walked to the window next to Roxas.

"They usually occur every now and then here in the Land of Departure." He said watching the meteor shower with the boy. "But it has been a few years since there was one like this happened. In fact this might be one of the most beautiful I've seen in my many years here."

After that they spent a few minutes just looking out the window watch as the meteors streaked through the night sky. It was a spectacle to behold for the Nobody. But he decided to ask the obvious question.

"I take it that you came to check up on me?" He asked not taking his eyes off the window.

"You are correct. This is actually the third time since dinner that I have come to check up on you. Terra, Aqua, and Ventus were worried about you." Eraqus said as he also kept looking out the window.

"Really, that's nice of them." Roxas said with a small smile. Eraqus just gave him a concerning glance.

"You never had anyone care about you before?" He asked.

"No the only people I remember having any concern about me was my friend Axel." Roxas replied back. Truthfully the only people Roxas could remember actually caring for him were Axel, Naminé, Sora, and now Ava. He was thankful for each and everyone of them, because if it wasn't for any of them he wouldn't be who he is without them helping to get through the disasters that made up the majority of his life

'Hopefully I will see them again one day...' Roxas thought wistfully. He knew it was possible, but he didn't know how long to wait or how to interact with them, but he would figure it out when he got there.

But for now he would focus on what is currently going on along trying to help Ava when she wakes up.

As this was going on through Roxas's head Master Eraqus was mentally thanking this Axel for helping the boy. The Keyblade Master didn't want to think about what would happen if the boy's former master succeeded with his plans. But for now he had something to discuss.

"Roxas." Eraqus said, breaking the boy out of him musings. "There is something I must ask you."

"What is it?" He asked. Roxas suddenly found himself on guard when the man summoned his Keyblade.

"Have you ever killed someone before?" Eraqus's tone was serious and as cold as steel.

"What do you mean by that?" Roxas asked as he started to back up from the window, ready to summon his Keyblade at any moment.

"During your fight with Terra I saw shades of a style designed to kill not protect. A Keyblade wielder's duty is to travel between the worlds and maintain the balance without interfering as much as possible. That includes having to kill someone if they interfere with the order of the worlds. But we try to limit it as much as possible to make sure that the stability of any world is not jeopardized at all. Even then we kill if there is no other means too or if they are too dangerous or dark to keep alive. So let me repeat my question, have you ever killed someone before?" Eraqus said casting a steely glare on Roxas.

This was something he had to know.

Roxas pondered what to say for a moment before he decided to speaking the truth.

"I have never killed anyone in my life." Roxas said getting the Keyblade Master to relax a bit. "But the only things that I've ever killed were Heartless."

He suddenly found the tip of Eraqus's Keyblade to his face with his eyes blazing with what could be described as a cold fury. Roxas was actually worried by the pressure coming from the man. Unlike the presence of darkness he wasn't used to this as it was a burning light.

After what seemed like hours, Eraqus lowered his Keyblade and let out a sigh.

'He is not lying.' Eraqus thought after studying the boy intensely for the past several minutes. He was looking for any signs of lying, but he couldn't find any. The boy has encountered those abominations before and was taught how to kill them. A skill that he wished to have known when he first learned how to wield a Keyblade.

"My apologies, but I had to make sure you were telling the truth. Talking about the Heartless is a serious matter." He said. Roxas relaxed at that, but he still didn't let his guard down.

"I can understand Eraqus." Roxas replied back.

The Keyblade Master could nod at that.

"It is troubling though." He said, piquing Roxas curiosity. "It has been a few years any Heartless were sighted anywhere in the Realm of In Between or the Realm of Light. If there was enough that you were constantly fighting them over a year then it is possibly a sign that the worlds will be plagued by darkness soon." He said in a grave tone of voice.

"When was the last time something like that happened?" Roxas asked.

"Not since ancient times. There have been a few close calls, but the darkness was destroyed before it could fester." Eraqus said.

'So I guess if it wasn't for Sora, then all the worlds in my time would have eventually been swallowed by the darkness.' He thought. From what he has seen from Sora's memories that a majority of the worlds where thought to have been lost to the Realm of Darkness. But after defeating Ansem and closing the Door to Darkness most of the worlds were restored.

"But enough about the Heartless. I have a proposition for you Roxas." Eraqus said catching him by surprise.

"What do you mean by that?" The Nobody inquired.

"It is something that I have been thinking about since last night. That you wish for a new life." Eraqus said before a small smile appeared on his face.

"I wish for you to stay in the Land of Departure to train as my newest apprentice, or if you wish a new world were you can start anew."

Roxas was honestly taken aback by this. Eraqus was offering him the chance to train with the three apprentices or to start a new life somewhere else.

"Re-Really?" Roxas asked dumbfounded.

"Yes and I mean it Roxas." Eraqus said. He dispelled his Keyblade and put a reinsuring hand on the boy's shoulder. "Just remember it is your choice to make. I will not force you to pick either one of them."

He didn't know what to do. This was probably the perfect chance to start a new life. To train to become a Keyblade Master, or to create his own life in a new world. Either one was the perfect chance to get what he always wanted. But he couldn't decide at the moment either to chose any of the options or not.

"If you are worried about making a decision now, then forget about it." Eraqus said. "A choice like this needs some consideration. I will give you a few days to think about your choice. After that or if you wish to go back to Twilight Town I will take you back there myself".

"Thank you, Eraqus." Was all Roxas could say. He literally could not think of anything else to say.

Before the Keyblade Master could say anything else a stray fireball struck the window and startled them. Eraqus looked out the window and saw that his students were practicing on the mountain's summit. He could only sigh at that.

"It seems that they are getting in some last minute practice." Roxas said as he looked over Eraqus's shoulder. It was kind of hard to do as the man was a good head and shoulders taller then himself.

"Indeed." Was all Eraqus said before he faced Roxas. "How about you go join them out on the summit? It is a much better viewpoint then through this singed window."

"Alright." Roxas said to him. As he was about to exit the room he turned back to Eraqus.

"Are you sure you don't want to come with me?"

Eraqus just smiled at him and shook his head.

"I am sorry, but I have something to take care of in the castle along with some last minute preparations for the Mark of Mastery exams tomorrow. So go on then Roxas, just no more sparing till after the exam. I do not think it is healthy to be knocked out 3 times in one day." He finished jokingly with a wily smirk.

Roxas couldn't help but chuckle at that as he left the room.

After a minute Eraqus also left the room and headed in the opposite direction Roxas left.

If he remembered correctly there was something in one of the old rooms down this hall. After a few minutes of searching he found the room he was looking for. As he opened the room he opened it to find a pile of broken items in the middle of the room.

'I should have known this would happen.' He thought with a sigh. Some parts of the castle were starting to fall into disrepair due to lack of use. He dug through the pile until he found what was looking for. He pulled the objects out of the pile and inspected it.

"This is not good." He inspected it real quick to see a large crack on it. After a bit more analysis of the object, he pocketed it away with a sigh. It was repairable, but it would take a few days to fix it.

With that he left the room and closed the door. Never to be opened again.

Roxas had just arrived at the spot when it looked like they had stopped sparing awhile ago. Ven was leaning on a wall not far from Terra and Aqua, looking up as the meteor shower started to end.

"Hey, we're gonna heading back." Terra said, getting Ven's attention.

"Yeah. Me too!"

As Ven was running up to his friends, he noticed someone was coming down the path.

"Roxas!" With that Terra and Aqua finally noticed that he wasn't that far behind them. The youngest apprentice proceeded to zip past them and crash into Roxas.

"Nice to see you too, but can you please be more careful next time. I still have some bruses." Roxas said with a wince. Ven just looked sheepish and backed off.

"Sorry about that."

"It's alright Ven."

"Nice to see you up Roxas, I thought for awhile that you wouldn't wake up till after the exam." Terra said.

"Well you certainly have it your best shot." Roxas said jokingly. Terra couldn't help but let out a little chuckle at that.

"That I did."The eldest apprentice said. "So you came here to see the meteor shower? Sorry to say it, but it looks like it has just finished." The sky was mainly clear now of meteors except for a few streaks.

"Mainly, but I was looking outside my window when a stray fireball hit it. So I Eraqus suggested that I come here to finish watching the meteor shower." Roxas explained.

After that Ven started to pale as he was being glared at by Aqua. It was the kind of look a mother would give a misbehaving child.

"M-My bad." He said nervously. It was an accident. He didn't think that his spell would actually hit the castle, it should have burned itself out by then.

"It is alright, I think. Eraqus seemed a little disappointed about it though." Roxas said. Ven just turned nodded, resigning himself for the lecture he would be getting from Master and Aqua later. Terra could only sigh as he put a comforting hand on his shoulder. Aqua dropped her glare before she turned to face Roxas.

"Have you made made a choice yet Roxas?" She inquired. He just shook his head.

"I haven't made a choice so far. I honestly don't know what to pick." Roxas said with a sigh. He would have to figure it out sooner or later. Aqua just gave him a small smile.

"Don't worry I'm sure you'll make the right choice whatever you choose." Aqua said. Roxas could only nod when they heard a yawn. They turned to see a drowsy looking Ven.

"I think now should be a good time to head back. We all should get some rest for the exams tomorrow." Terra said the other apprentices and Roxas to nod. But before they left, Aqua went to the summit's edge. She looked up at the night sky for any remaining meteors while clutching an object between her hands. A moment later a meteor flashes through the night and with it Aqua makes a wish as it passes by.

"Together...always."

With that she ran to catch up to them. But as she passes Roxas, he sensed something lurking around. He turned behind him only to feel the presence was gone.

'What was that, it felt like someone was right behind us.' Roxas thought as he checked his surroundings for any trace of someone spying on him. He found none except for lingering sense of negativity in the general area.

"Roxas! Are you coming!?" He heard Ven shout at him from down the path.

"Yeah, just give me a second!" He hollered back. After he looked around for another minute he found nothing.

'Whatever was spying on us is gone now.' Roxas thought.

With that he ran back down the path to join the apprentices on the walk back to the castle. Unaware of the events that would transpire tomorrow.

That was the last night that the three apprentices would ever share under the same night sky.

As well as the night that Roxas's life truly begun.

It had been a few hours since the apprentices and Roxas had returned to the castle and they were all asleep at the time.

But in Ventus's room all of the sudden a Corridor of Darkness opened and a figure stepped out. He walked up to a sleeping Ventus and summoned a Keyblade! He then pointed it at his heart.

"It would be all too easy, just stab him right now and it all be over." The figure said before sighing. "Sadly that old coot would notice and even then I wouldn't be strong enough to survive. Hell I probably wouldn't survive if the Keyblade Master and Roxas ganged up if we combined. So for now you get to live."

With that he dispelled the Keyblade and began to search around the room.

"Why couldn't it have been Roxas and not you." The figure said as he began to rummage through Ven's stuff. "Not only is he way stronger then you, but he is more worthy of being my other half then you ever were."

He could only sigh at that and continued in a bitter tone.

"Sadly if I tried anything I would most likely perish. He was able to sense me when I spied on the weakling tonight." He shook his head as he was done speaking. After another minute he found what he was looking for.

Ven's Wayfinder

He channeled some darkness into it and set it back were he found it.

"Get stronger weakling, sadly I need you in order to be whole and free." The figure said as he entered back into the corridor, closing it a moment afterwords. Leaving nothing behind to show that he was there.

(Chapter 12 end)