Dive Into the Heart [RAID]

[Artemicion]

Refuge was hard to find in the aftermath of the Nightfall, but today was exceptionally troublesome. A rift in the sky had opened, and through it a large beast had emerged, the embodiment of fury and rage itself. In a sense, hell had awoken on Twilight Town. Those lucky few who managed to get to safety now cowered in whatever shelter was left, relying on the heroes keeping the beast at bay. But there were other heroes, behind the scenes, and they needed assistance. Xion had to be awoken, she was the key.

Artemicon had never been under as much pressure in his life.

"Us Moogle aren't cut out for this kind of excircise, kupo..."

He had hurried over from his shelter when reviewing the items delivered to him from the previous party, directly from Gabranth. In his hands was clutched a shining stone, and he was breathing heavily. Running from Heartless had that effect on Somebodies, but at least when he was out of sight, they didn't follow. To whoever came with him, they would see him put the stone down, and hover over to Xion, looking her over. Her Keyblade laid next to her as she took slow breaths, still deep in the realm of sleep.

"If what I read in this report is true, this stone contains the power of a powerful Goddess that once fought against Chaos, long ago. Since the Heartless is half Chaos, maybe we can beat it! But... There's a problem. We only have half the stone. Xion has the other half in her Keyblade already, but she wasn't able to pass her trial in time. The beast is keeping her asleep.


The easiest way would be to get a Keyblade wielder to help, and then we could go into her heart, but... Well, hopefully one shows up. I have my brothers and sisters out there searching now, kupo! With luck, we'll snag one."

[Marmadue]

There hadn't been enough time. The preparations had barely even started, they weren't ready for a battle this size!

At least Marmadue felt like it. Yes, he hadn't exactly been there to help with the ones who had decided to fight the beast in an attempt to fell it, so he didn't know how well they were going to do, but… But there had been so little time! And he definitely wasn't prepared mentally at all. When the sky had been torn asunder and the great beast had pushed itself through right into the ruins of their refuge… The Yuke hadn't taken it too well. It had taken what felt like ages for him to calm down enough to do something useful and help round up any non-fighters out of the way and somewhere safe.

There probably was no place that was safe in the town. But their little shelters were the best they could do for now.

It was difficult to concentrate, knowing what lurked nearby. The Yuke's hands shook every time he tried to keep them still, a small sound from the inside of his helmet probably the chattering of teeth. He couldn't even sit down, full of nervous energy. Instead of pacing however, Marmadue did what he could to heal anyone who had been injured on the way.

And look over Xion.

The girl had been sleeping the entire time, waiting in the shelter. It was difficult to know what was going on inside her head, but she did look quite… Peaceful, considering everything that was going on. She had not stirred once, no matter what happened around her. If it was a magic spell that could be undone, Marmadue had not figured out a way with their limited time.

By the time the moogle came back, the Yuke already was there, giving way to the floating creature that also wanted to get closer to Xion. No words made their way out Marmadue's helmet, though he nervously plucked at the feathers on his hands as he shuffled to the side, listening to the moogle's words. There was some hope though, the Yuke looking up when the stone and how it might be able to defeat the horrible beast was brought up by Artemicion! …But of course it wasn't so easy. Of course there was a catch. Of course they were missing something.

Rubbing the side of his neck, Marmadue certainly managed to look quite defeated already, his posture deflating. However, the plan itself was sounding rather… Strange.
"Ah, did I hear this correctly… Go into the young miss' heart?" He tilted his head, his voice sounding a bit rough. There had been a lot of screaming he had done…

But it sounded crazy, right? The heart was… A heart. Not exactly something someone like him would fit into, right? It also sounded quite lethal for the owner of said heart. If those mysterious oversized keys were the answer to that…

It was no use. Marmadue hadn't seen anyone like that outside Xion!

[Avari]

Avari
Refugee

The Dark Hide came sooner than anyone could have imagined. Avari could hear it all the way from Station Heights as its roar bellowed through the streets of Twilight Town. It sent tremors through the very ground as Avari watched it appear out of the sky and land in the city scape below. Knowing how difficult this battle would be, Avari felt the strong urge to go help the group that would be fighting the beast, but something Max told her a couple days ago held her back.

The past few days she and Max had spent scouring the city for something Max had referred to as the keyhole. It was something the heartless were trying to reach and, if successful, they would destroy Twilight Town, just like all the worlds before it. Though Max had told her as much as he could in this short amount of time, Avari couldn't even begin to imagine what a world's keyhole would even look like, or where it could be. Was it really just as simple as being a literal keyhole planted in the ground? Whatever the case, there was only one thing that could lock it and seal it away from the heartless: the keyblade. The weapon Xion had been carrying around; she was the only one who could save Twilight Town. It was also the only thing that could truly kill the heartless, according to Max.

With this knowledge, Max informed her that Xion needed to be protected at all costs, but with the threat of the looming Chaos Dark Hide, it was clear that the town's strongest fighters will be busy keeping the beast at bay for as long as they could. So, Max began training Avari during the three days, often times as surprise sparring matches in the midst of their discussions about the keyblades and their search for the keyhole. The moment Avari let her guard down, Maxwell would take a swing at her with his sheathed sword. It kept him from drawing blood during their matches, but the weight of the sword was still plenty to leave a painful bruise; a clear reminder that danger can come at anytime, anywhere.

He was a strict teacher, not unlike Jin, punishing her for each mistep, each mistake in her form. She had to think on her feet, because he gave her little time to react to his attacks. The enemy would provide her no such luxury, Max would tell her frequently, so she needed to be ready. At one point they even sparred on a rooftop, and as Avari lost her balance near the edge, instead of falling two stories down, she discovered that her sword could also keep her floating in the air for a short time, enough time for Max to catch her and pull her back up. Afterwards Avari was quick to scroung up some materials to make a leather strap for the sword's hilt, a simple loop to put her hand through in case her hand slips from the handle.

And at the end of each long day, Avari still had her promise to Jin to uphold. Before she turned in for the night, she would return to the metal beam he had set up for her and practice her fire magic on it. She'd managed to melt it down all the way to half its size before the final day. On the final day she asked one of the moogles to combine her fire charm with a new earth charm she'd come across while she and Maxwell had been searching, and she returned to the metal beam once again to test the charm's new magic. Three flaming rocks came hurtling from the sky and knocked the beam down from its perch, bludegeoning it into a mishapen form and singeing it as well as the ground around it. It may not have been what Jin asked for exactly, but Avari could now summon miniature meteors to pelt her enemies.

The last three days had been the most strenuous, exhausting, and difficult work Avari had done her whole life. Her body still ached and was covered in scrapes and bruises, but she was ready for whatever the Dark Hide had to throw at them. But Avari wouldn't be fighting it, or at least not yet; Max had made her promise she would protect Xion with her life. And Avari understood her task.

She broke into a run through the streets, her body aching in protest with every step, but she had to push through it. And it was not difficult to do so, with the sounds of battle ringing out from the Sandlot, her adrenaline was pumping so fast that soon she couldn't even feel how sore she was. As she ran down through Station Heights, she caught sight of a moogle carrying the stone and book they had retrieved from Gabranth.

"Artemicion!" She called out to him as she lept forward, striking down a shadow that had gotten a bit too close to the moogle. "I'm right behind ya!" She added as she ran after him towards, assuming he was headed towards Xion just as she was. And that happened to be the case as he led the way into a small hideaway in an alley on the outskirts of the sandlot. They were so close to the battle now, they might as well have been in the thick of it, based on how loud it was. Avari's whole body tensed as she heard the beast's roar once more, and she stood at the entrance of their hiding place, staring out towards the direction of the fight. She couldn't see it directly from here, but she feared for her friends who were fighting tooth and nail to keep them all safe.

Once the rest of the group was gathered here in the hideaway, Artemicion explained to them that the stone in his paw was the key to defeating the beast, though it was only half of the whole stone. The other half resided in Xion's keyblade, but while she remained asleep, they wouldn't be able to do anything about it. And apparently they would need another keyblade wielder in order to somehow... access her heart to wake her up? Maxwell had explained some of the functions of a keyblade to her, but what Artemicion described now was completely beyond Avari.

"We have to... go into her heart?" She glanced down for a moment, looking at the keyblade laying beside Xion. "Well her keyblade is right here, can't we just use that? She bent down to pick up Xion's weapon curiously, but after a moment or two the keyblade vanished in a beam of light, returning to its proper place at Xion's side, "Oh. Okay, maybe not. But still, we don't know anyone else with a keyblade! There has to be another way Artemicion! Surely there has to be something we can do!"

[Fahe Reingard]

Flying had it's benefits with exploring a town with a level ground, soaring through the air Fahe saw many of those he met in the portal going around town, that was until a guttural cry was issued forth from the sandlot. Swooping over head he could see that fighters were already fighting whatever was down there, they should be able to handle the thing. Landing next to the sandlot in an alley, Fahe slipped into the small area that held the comatose girl.

Seeing the small crowd of people there including the much taller one with a helmet always on, Marmadue, Fahe though, and the girl, Avari. There also was what seemed to be a small purple cat thing. Whatever it was it knew what it was doing and it was doing it. For some reason Avari picked up Xion's blade and after a moment it instantly teleported back to her side.

"So to get rid of the thing roaring out there, we got to wake her up, correct?" Fahe asked assuming it was correct, "Then how do we get in to her heart if it's inside her body?" Fahe questioned while turning towards the moogle. "I mean it's not like there's a weapon of infinite power capable of having us all travel into her heart, is there?"

[Axel]

~ Tone Setter ~

Fire has a way of spontaneity; it has never been an element known for its patience. Flames start quickly and consume rapidly, leaving little regard for friend or foe. Whomever gets caught in the inferno is quite simply consumed.

It was the same way for the burning hot element that burst into the atmosphere now. A trail of flame snapped onto the ground, racing toward Xion. In the blink of an eye the flickering flames created a ring of fire around her unconscious body. An explosive burst warned onlookers to distance themselves from the unconscious girl, or get caught in the tumult.

The moogle who’d found him, well — she failed to give very good detail about the situation, simply stating that Xion was in trouble, and to come to her rescue. No sooner had the moogle mentioned Xion than Lea had been on his way. The moogle mentioned something about Xion being close to the Sandlot and that was all he needed. Just how Xion had materialized again after what had happened, he had no clue. But she was here now. And that fact alone was worth getting worked up over.

Had he taken the time to absorb the situation he might have noticed that these folks meant Xion no harm. But there was adrenaline alight in his veins right now. As far as he knew, there was family to save. The finer details could be figured out later. Now was the time to act!

“Get away from her!” the demanding shout was accompanied by an ignited chakram. Its outward-facing tines dug into the ground as it traveled between the intruders and the flames protecting Xion. In its wake it left a burning trail. This attack wasn’t meant to hit anybody, instead it was intended to put a second layer of distance between the one he’d come to claim and everyone else. If it had done exactly that, perfect. But if anyone had gotten in the way, well — that would have been their fault for not moving in the first place.

Lea used the time his weapon spent cutting a swathe through one end of The Usual Spot to zip into the center of his circle of fire, standing next to Xion’s sleeping frame. She would be safe with him. His faithful chakram returned to his hand. He had assumed a protective, crouched position. The Eternal Flames rocked back and forth on his fingers with ease as he waited to fight.

A feral jade colored gaze snapped from one of his opponents to the other, ready to take down whomever had the gall to get in his way.

Now this was a wrench in the works. After all, they’d been looking for a Keyblade Wielder to help Xion. Lea was using two spiky, circular weapons. There would be no reason to assume that this was the Keyblade Wielder they had been waiting for.

[Artemicion]

"Yes, kupo! Into her heart you all must go! Keyblades have the unique power, from what I read, to access what's called the sleeping world, which Xion is trapped in. I was loaned a book by a great wizard once, and- Whoa!"

The sudden burst of flame around Xion caught the Moogle off guard, and he jumped back, batting at his bauble as it lightly smoked, singed just slightly.

"Owowowow... That wasn't very nice, kupopo!"

The Moogle turned on the perpetrator, but jumped at the sight of him.

"Wait! You're Organization XIII! One of my colleagues worked with you before? Are you... Here to take her away? I won't let you, kupo! We need to wake her up so we can fight the Heartless, and to do that we need a Keyblade! My brothers and sisters are looking for one, and... Wait... If you found out about this place..."

The Moogle floated to the edge of the fire, getting a closer look at Lea, and gasped.

"You must be a Keyblade wielder! That's great, you can help us! Here, let me just find what we need..."

With a look of concentration, a book appeared in the Moogle's hands, heavy and colored blue, with a heart design on the cover. He opened it and scanned it, closely.

"So... Lea, is it? We need you to unlock her heart. According to my book, there's going to be something called Nightmares deep in her heart, holding her asleep. It may be dangerous, but apparently you might have Dream Eater allies, too! We need to hurry, though, our forces won't be able to hold off the Heartless for long, kupo!"

[Marmadue]

The moogle hadn't come alone. Avari soon followed, and even the winged boy he had met on their previous little adventure was there – Fahe, wasn't it? That must have been it. Seeing the two definitely made Marmadue sigh out of relief, happy to know the two of them were still safe and sound. Well, Avari seemed to have taken some damage, but nothing major.
"Ah, Avari, perhaps you would like me to…?" He suggested, motioning towards her injuries.

Marmadue tilted his head as he listened, not sure if he had ever quite heard a plan like what the Moogle was suggesting. Going into someone's heart… It definitely sounded crazy. His gaze drifted to the large key they called a keyblade waiting beside the sleeping Xion. It definitely seemed like a magical weapon, considering how Avari hadn't had any luck trying to use it before it left her grasp. Were there more such weapons? The book Artemicion mentioned did catch his interest…

But such interest was short-lived, when the floor suddenly burst into flames with an explosive whoomh that caused the Yuke to jump and yelp – and fall onto his ass when a fast-flying, well, thing shot through the air and scraped the ground. It all happened so fast it took Marmadue a moment to fully understand what was happening as he kept his upper body upright with the aid of his arms, staring at the new arrival.

A man he had never seen before, with black robes and head full of long, red hair – a real fire hazard, if one was frank, but that just had to mean the man was comfortable with the level of control he had over the flames. And he was right where Xion was! She was in danger with this crazed pyromaniac!

…Probably? Okay, when he thought about it, it was a bit strange… Was he defending the girl? Or was he defending them from the girl? It was crazy!

"Ah, h-h-hold on–!" Was what Marmadue managed to stammer out in an attempt to defuse the situation, but it didn't help much. No, it was the moogle that managed to notice something about this stranger – something about an organization…? The Yuke didn't understand, puzzled as he looked at Artemicion. He was even more puzzled when the moogle claimed this man was the keyblade wielder they had been looking for! Really?!

He blinked, his gaze towards the stranger and focused enough for him to miss the appearance of the book he was interested in just a moment ago. He… Wasn't sure if this was the kind of a person he had been waiting for. Perhaps Artemicion was wrong – after all, the most important part was missing…

The Yuke stood up shakily and gave him clothes a quick dusting.
"Ah… Are you certain you aren't mistaken? There ah, doesn't seem to be one of those keys anywhere…"

[Avari]

Avari
Refugee

When Marmadue spoke up, commenting on Avari’s physical status. She looked herself over, seeing the scrapes and bruises quite plainly, ”Oh, that’s just from training. They make me look tougher, don’t you think?” She chuckled, hoping to reassure her friend that she was okay, really. No doubt the others fighting in the Sandlot were suffering far more than she was right now.

Artemicion addressed everyone’s confusion, explaining that the power of the keyblade could access some kind of sleeping world where Xion was. Avari’s expression only twisted further into confusion as the moogle went on to mention a book and a wizard of some kind. It seemed as though he had more to say, but suddenly a burst of flames whizzed passed the group, surrounding Xion. Avari spun around to face the intruder, drawing her blade within seconds as a red haired man in a black coat approached through the gate.

“Get away from her!” He barked as he let loose a flaming circular weapon, leaving behind more fire to separate the group and Xion. He then appeared within the wreath of flames beside Xion, crouching with his strange weapons at his side. She had no way of knowing just how strong this new enemy was, or if she even stood a chance, but Maxwell’s words echoed in her mind for a second time.

---

In the midst of seeking out the world's keyhole, Maxwell had stopped abruptly, contemplating something as he turned to her.

"Avari, our strongest are gonna be fighting that...thing when it comes," he said, staring unseeing into the distance as if he was somewhere else, "I know you'll want to fight it too, but we need to have someone who can keep smaller heartless away from Xion. Without her, we're just doomed."

Max looks up at Avari, a hard, steely, dangerous look in his eyes that she hasn't seen before. Possibly even frightening, even if it isn't directed "at her".

"Guard her. With your life. Because if you don't, there's a chance none of us make it to the other side of this."

---

”I won’t let you take her!” Outmatched or not, the few people in this room were the only ones who could protect Xion if the others failed. She didn’t have time to listen to Artemicion as he tried to explain the situation, or wonder why this man and Xion were garbed in the same clothes. For the sake of Xion, and all of Twilight Town, she had to act.

She directed her free hand towards the wall, and a loose brick shot out towards Lea, catching fire mid-flight as it was aimed towards his head. Wasting no time, Avari launched herself through the fire in the same instance, singeing flesh and fabric as she swung her sword down towards him. She may not be strong enough yet, but the least she could do was divide his attention to better her chances.

(Disclaimer: everything in italics was written by Maxwell to ensure the dialogue was in his words.)

[Fahe Reingard]

It was a few seconds before anything crazy happened, a record here, hopefully one that would someone would break. While Avari and Marmadue were discussing Avari's apparent injuries, fire filled the small area. Making the purple creature's puff ball smoke. It was nice that Fahe was farther away from the flare, but the trail from the door to Xion did catch him off guard.

Marmadue seemed to be taking the visitor well but Avari not so well, especially with her blasting a flaming brick from the wall. Seeing the danger of firing a brick at someone who you didn't know, especially when that person is standing over someone who is in a coma. Firing a feather at the brick, he turned to Avari, "Hey, I know that he just kinda came here, but he is standing over the one person that can kill the thing that will destroy the town. I doubt that firing a brick at him would help anything."

Looking at the guy's weapons all he saw was two circular, spiky things, not really a key but whatever the purple thing says is what Fahe will go with. "Hey, whatever your name is, do you got a giant key then? I mean you don't gotta show it to me you're pretty angry or protective right now, don't know which, but, again, she can kill the thing currently on the verge of destroying the town. It would help if you'd help."

[Axel]

Now of course it’s expected when one lights a fire that there’s a reaction. It was the same here. The scene escalated quickly into a thrilling flurry of challenge and chatter.

They wouldn’t let him take her? “Hah! Try and stop me!” it was a confident and daring statement that, fueled by his anger, really did make him sound like the bad guy.

It was the feisty girl who’d been the first topic requiring his attention. Lea knew he was no match for dense projectiles, but his speed was what he’d trained to make up for it. He planned to duck out of the way with his quick reflexes, but before he could, a silver feather collided with it. He'd have thanked the guy defending him, but Avari was still in attack mode, and to be honest, as long as she was trying to get to Xion, so was he.

His gaze snapped to the approaching assailant. Avari had used her brick to shorten the time he'd had his attention on her, but it didn't really matter. The Fire Wielder was quick on his feet. Lea simply lifted a Chakram to block her overhead sword slash. If he had timed it correctly he’d have been able to take Avari’s momentum and redirect it to throw her off balance.

He was about to toss another wave of fire. Luckily before he had done so something Artemecion said caught his ears. The span of the conflict lasted little more than a few seconds, during which time some of the information from the others in the room got lost in the amalgamation of voices blurring together. But right now Artemicion had been the only one talking. And if what he was saying right now had been true… “Wait a sec!” Lea barked.

The thin fire-wielder straightened up a bit,  a jade colored gaze sharp on the moogle. “You’re trying to wake her up, too?” As if reacting to a mental command, the protective flames around Xion were doused, leaving behind an airy sound in their wake.

There was a gentle shrug from his shoulders. “Perhaps I jumped to conclusions too soon.” Nonetheless, he was familiar with the general ideas behind the Dive into the Heart. He was around when Riku had gone to save Sora. It was the finer details that were cloudy... like how one got started getting into the other's dreams. 

His gaze deflected to the two asking about a Keyblade. Would he help? Well now that he knew they were all out there for Xion, of course he would. “So you need a Keyblade do you?” The redhead allowed his Eternal Flames to drop from his hands. Each Chakram would bounce off the ground and vanish into millions of silver particles. With his hands now free, he held out his right, getting ready to embrace the Flame of Rebirth instead. Lea focussed his energy into his palm and flicked his wrist. Nothing happened.

Gah! Ever since his training with Yen Sid he'd been better at causing his Keyblade to materialize, but it was apparent he still hadn't completely mastered the approach. He modified his technique just a bit and tried again.

A burst of wind gusted up from nowhere, flames swirled in a flash and suddenly there was a brilliantly colored weapon in his hand. The hilt resembled one of his Chakrams. The blade itself resembled a gusting flame that had been frozen in time. The base was a golden color that faded into orange and red toward the end of the blade.

With a confident smirk he glanced back at Artemecion. Maybe that book would tell them more about how to initiate this process?

[Artemicion]

"Kupu! Everybody, stop fighting!"

Suddenly, a burst of magic erupted from the Moogle, and though the attacks of the brink and feathers flew out, they stopped short in the field of light energy. The Moogle was wearing a small necklace, and it glowed as he fumed, looking around at everybody. The fires died down, and consensus was reached. With a deep breath, he looked back at his book to find more answers.

"'If used on another Keyblade wielder, a holder of the key may enter the sleeping world in one's heart. But they should beware, as darkness could lead them to eternal rest as well.' It looks like she's going to have a Keyhole to open up, kupo."

There was a brief shuffle as he turned the page, and began reading again.

"We don't have much time. You should instinctively know how to unlock her heart, and I'll hold up here. I've got magic, but it won't last forever. The Heartless is looking for her, she's the answer. All because of this materia. And somebody... Oh."

Artemicon stopped abruptly, and the book disappeared in a puff. Clearing his throat, he looked to each person.

"Well, last minute preparations happen now! Hop to! Lea, take care of the portal, and everyone enter when he's done, kupo."

((OOC: The next round will be inside Xion's heart. Everyone will be assumed to have entered the portal, no exceptions. Use this round to tie up any loose ends.))

[Marmadue]

Things… Didn't go as planned. In fact, things escalated quite quickly. Not that anyone could be blamed for that when a stranger suddenly hops in, sets the place on fire and tries to pick a fight. At least the Moogle had the ability to control the crowd and put a quick end to the fight, the flames too soon dissipating into nothingness. And despite everything that had happened, the girl was still asleep, not bothered by anything around her.

Marmadue walked over to Avari, occasionally glancing at the man in black robes just to make sure there weren't going to be more flames. Earlier, Avari had turned down the offer of healing, not having been very bothered by the scrapes on her body. But when she jumped through the flames, her skin had paid the price. She was lucky she hadn't caught on fire…
"…I think it is fine, for now," he mused to the girl, hoping that she had calmed down a little as he brought up his hand, glowing with healing energy. They all needed to be in good shape if they wanted to get through this alive. A quick look at Xion did tell him that at least she had been unharmed by the flames.

Still, the stranger wasn't exactly the beacon of trust, especially when it seemed to take a few tries to call out that strange large key-like weapon of theirs. At least, in the end, he managed. It did prove that this person was indeed the one they had been looking for – and luckily, their goal was the same, more or less. Even if they couldn't trust the man, perhaps they could at least trust his motivation. They all wanted to wake up Xion. If they did that, it would be fine… Right?

The Yuke listened to the Moogle's explanation, though he did notice that a sentence was cut short. A bad sign, that. He hoped for clarification, though they also had to scramble to get ready. Marmadue didn't think he could really get ready. At least, not any, er, ready-er than he already was! It was crazy, but it seemed to be their only hope. How could one be prepared for that? And a roar from outside reminded him of how little time they had, exactly.
"A-Ah, what do you mean somebody…?"

Why did he have the feeling that he wouldn't be getting the answer…

[Avari]

Avari
Refugee

Avari stiffened as Artemicion released a blast of magic that surrounded them all, and she paused to see the brick and feather collapse to the ground instantly. She looked back at the others to see Marmadue was rather startled, and Fahe had intercepted her brick with one of his feathers- were those things made of steel or something? Regardless, he didn't want her fighting either. She glanced back just as Lea straightened up, and she stumbled back a bit, not expecting him to pull away from her blade so suddenly. Once the flames died down, Avari lowered her sword and kept it at her side, just in case he decided to be their enemy again. Lea dismissed the weird circular weapons in his hands, and in their place he summoned a fiery looking sword.

Hearing Artemicion's explanation, Avari looked from Lea's weapon to Xion's keyblade, and then back at his weapon again. "Wait, that's a keyblade too? Well how come you went and attacked us?" Well, okay, maybe he hadn't attacked them per say... She frowned like a pouting child before sheathing her sword and crossing her arms. "Or I guess I swung first. Sorry 'bout that." This whole situation was confusing to say the least, but as they could all still hear the sounds of battle not too far off from their location, Avari was just grateful this guy had come along just when they needed him; even if he did seem a bit hot-headed.

As Marmadue approached her to assure her that it was alright for now, she gave a quick nod of acknowledgment. She didn't refuse his healing hands this time, feeling the sting of the burns across her skin. As he used his restorative magic on her, even her fatigue from her three days of training seemed to lessen and she could feel her energy returning to her. "Alright! Thanks Marmadue!" She threw a cheeky grin his way before glancing back at their moogle friend.

Artemicion wanted the spiky red-head to open a portal into the sleeping world Xion was trapped in. She wasn't sure how that was possible, but it meant they would be leaving Artemicion and Xion's sleeping form here in Twilight Town. "Are you sure you don't need help protecting Xion? I promised Max that I wouldn't let anything happen to her." It didn't feel right, even if they were entering the dream world to bring her back. What if something happened here in the meantime, and Artemicion was defeated? There would be no one left standing between the heartless and Xion, the only person capable of saving them all. But if Artemicion thought that was best, then she would do her best, even if she had no idea what this dream world had in store.

[Fahe Reingard]

With a magic burst from the purple creature Fahe's feather fell to the ground along with the brick the room seemed to become a lot less violent. It especially helped with Lea's fire going out, although the summoning of this magic weapon they would all to wake up Xion didn't really make Fahe have faith in the stranger. "So how long have you had this 'keyblade,' you seem to have trouble with it."

Walking further into the room for the first time since he arrived Marmadue went over and healed Avari and the purple thing started rambling about keyblades and how the portal would work, also something about a keyhole. In any case Lea seemed to be ready enough, so it was time to get into that portal. With everything calm and fine practically no one would notice the feather drifting back to Fahe and going back into his wings.

"So what do we do now, he waves his sword thing around and we go into her heart?" Fahe asked to no one in particular. Standing beside Marmadue he fingered the materia he had gotten in the woods. He still hadn't figured out how it worked and it did seem important enough to keep. In any case they were going to go into someone's heart that could possibly lead them into eternal darkness, what a day.

[Axel]

Artemicion had just confirmed Lea’s inkling about the situation. Since he’d jumped onto the scene he hadn’t been entirely sure about what happened to Xion outside of hearing from one of the other moogles that he needed to save her - which was all the context he needed in order to dash off and try to do just that. He had already surmised that since they needed him to summon the Flame of Rebirth, this might be something related to an awakening. He had seen Riku dive into Sora’s heart some time ago at Yen Sid’s Tower and Lea was more than willing to do the same for Xion; even if he weren’t sure exactly how she could even exist. Not that this sort of thing surprised him; his own existence was a bit of a shock after his sacrifice to save Sora in the Betwixt and Between. He still had to awaken Xion. He figured he could ask her for an explanation then.

There was another chilling roar from just outside. The trembling of the ground was a palpable warning that they had to act fast. Their conversations would have to be less than cordial if they were to make this dive a success. “Apologies everyone; it looks like I don’t have time to answer everyone’s questions right now. We've gotta get moving!”

It was only a few strides with those long legs to get to the far end of the room. Once there, he turned toward Xion, lifted his keyblade toward Xion’s sleeping body and his energy on her. The room may have been small, but it granted enough space for the incoming portal in addition to the occupants already there.

The skin around his black-lined jade eyes tightened just a bit. He hoped he had been doing this correctly, as this would have been the first time he’d used Flame of Rebirth to open a portal into someone’s heart. His uncertainty was quick to choke beneath the courage of his resolution. Of two things he was certain: that he was going to do this for her, and they were going to win. The details were lesser issues which could be sorted out in the process of action.

With his direction clarified his eyes slipped closed and he tapped into the sensations of his heart, prompting it to bridge the gap between himself and his old friend. His body glowed softly with the familiar warmth of a fiery light. Xion’s light seemed to be twofold: first there was a dark cobalt outline around her body, and beyond that had been a brighter cornflower blue shine. As he continued to focus, their radiance grew simultaneously: it was confirmation that the link between them had been established.

Suddenly a large object resembling a flame cast in the purest orange appeared from an explosive burst of fire. It levitated up and down in a soft bobbing motion between the Flame of Rebirth and Xion’s unconscious body. The portal looked like an orange and yellow ball of fire with a couple of hovering, disconnected wisps ascending near the main body. It took on the semblance of a crystallized fireball.

His swooping eyes snapped open at the same time the ground shivered once again. Their radiance dissipated almost instantly. Lea’s attention shifted to each of the adventurers present. “Listen, we’re all on the same side. I don’t know what it’s going to be like once we go in. And I’m not sure we’ll make it back out. All I know is: I have to save Xion!" His voice was ardent toward the end. "If you aren’t ready to fight with everything you’ve got for this, you’d better figure it out before stepping inside.” It wasn’t demanding or degrading; instead, Lea had made his statement in order to give everyone fair warning that there might be no way out, and yet he had the vigor to show he was avowed to this path himself. 

Lea wasn’t the type to wait and make sure everyone walked into the portal. He just bit the bullet and headed right in, shooting Artemicion a confident sort of smirk that communicated his trust in the moogle to guard Xion’s body while they were away. In a quick flash of light Lea entered the portal and was out of sight.

It didn’t matter to him whether everyone else was going to come with him or if this would be a solo act. He would follow the path of his own conviction whether or not anyone chose to join him.

To be honest, behind his confident exterior he really wasn’t sure he had what it would take to do this. It was true that he’d undergone training courses with Yen Sid after Sora’s awakening, but that didn’t mean he could hold a candle to Riku or Sora when it came to keyblade proficiency. Of course that little detail wasn’t going to deter him from wrapping himself in confidence and giving this everything he had.

When it came to those dear to him, nothing was going to stand in his way.

Back in Twilight Town, the gateway Lea created would remain open for those who chose to follow his tempestuous lead.