Yuki had hoped she would find the twins as she made her way through the darkness toward what she hoped was Castle Impia. Even if they were dealing with a sudden revelation or the fall of a lie they had to know how important their goal was. They had taken so much time. Sora and Riku's Mark of Mastery had to be almost over. They didn't have much more time.

As Yuki moved further and further into the Realm of Darkness she began to recognize the terrain. Maybe it was a little different, but the way the rocks were arranged. It was the same as the path in front of the castle. Which meant she was almost to her goal. With no sign of X and Y.

"Come on," Yuki groaned as she searched around her. She could see the Castle now, a faint spot on the horizon. The blue glowing lines mapping out its edges as if it were just another rock hidden in the scenery. It was so close. "We don't have time for this."

"Right you are, your majesty," Yuki held in another groan at the familiar lilting voice. She turned to face it, surprised to find Aryum this time. The redhead was perched on top of one of the many rocks in the area, leaning back on her arms as she grinned down at Yuki. Golden eyes glimmered with a hint of mischief. A usual look for Aryum. "Or would you prefer most honorable bearer?"

"I would prefer you used my name," Yuki answered. Aryum had wasted no time using the new revelation against her. She had probably known for far longer. Was it one of the riddles she had presented them? Or something she kept hidden up her sleeve?

"Is it really yours?" Aryum asked. For a moment Yuki furrowed her brows together. But she quickly brushed any confusion aside.

"Yes," Yuki said firmly. She was already tired of Aryum's games. She wouldn't let this one continue. "It's the one thing that is really mine." Of all the things Yuki had, it was always with her. Never taken no matter what else was.

Yuki was almost worried by the way Aryum's grin grew.

"Good answer," Aryum said. She stretched her arms, arching her back. She watched Yuki as she slipped off the rock landing on the sandy ground with a soft crunch. Her arms went behind her back as she faced Yuki, leaning forward. Her grin never faded, filling Yuki with a feeling of dread.

"Are you going to torment me?" Yuki asked.

"No," Aryum answered quickly. "Not my interest at the moment. After all, I like to think of you as a friend."

Yuki couldn't form a response right away. Only staring at Aryum blankly.

"What?"

It wasn't Yuki's most eloquent response, that was for sure. But she wasn't sure what else to say. In all her experience Aryum would never quite line up with a friend. She certainly had friends who liked to heckle, X was always teasing when he got the chance. Axel had been another who liked to tease. But neither of them were close to the sort of annoyance that Aryum could give.

"It's been quite some time since we met," Aryum said, turning away from Yuki to begin her pacing in front of her. Yuki could only nod her head. Aryum had been one of the first members to really interact with Yuki much, even if it was only for missions. "Surely you know my games by now. I've never really stood against you. I want to help you."

"Help me what?" Yuki asked. Aryum hadn't really stood against Yuki often. Many times she let her escape, and offered her usual cryptic advice.

"Understand," Aryum said, stopping her pacing. She was directly in front of the path to the castle now. "After all, Xy was too angry to really explain much. So let me."

Yuki set her jaw, crossing her arms. As much as she hated to admit it, Aryum was right. X had been distracted for too long. And angry the last she saw him. He hadn't been in the right place to even begin explaining. Though this was the time it would be most helpful, even if he had kept it simple and explained in his own cryptic way. Yuki had at least learned how to understand his riddles.

"What is the Kingdom Keeper?" Yuki asked. X's answer had been vague. The one who would bear the key. Y had seemed to understand it in the moment, but Yuki hadn't. And they hadn't had the time to question things then. They still didn't now. But it was weighing on Yuki. The voice was Kingdom Hearts,  but what did it mean?

"No one is sure what makes someone a Kingdom Keeper," Aryum admitted. She removed her arms from her back, crossing one and resting the other elbow in her hand. Yuki watched as three cards appeared in her hand. "I have my own suspicions but I'm not certain. But to put it simply you are the chosen holder of the X-blade when it will be forged. If it is to be forged."

"So even if Xehanort gets to complete his plan, it will end up in my hands?" Yuki asked. She knew little about this X-blade, only Xehanort meant to summon it. If he did, and she was there. She would get it. A trump against all his work.

"Theoretically," Aryum said. She brought the three cards together making it seem like she was only holding one now. "Never been done. Or at least not for a very, very long time."

"How long?" Yuki asked.

"The last time any sort of meaningful connection was made it was the time of the keyblade war," Aryum said. She turned the card she was holding to face Yuki. Glancing over it quickly she recognized a flash of purple hair and a number in either corner. It was the same boy she had seen the picture of before the land of the dead. She knew him, somehow. "Yes, he was the Kingdom Keeper of the era. I was told by a messenger that the battle was quite a scene to behold when she arrived. He couldn't hold it back you see."

"Hold what back?" Yuki asked. A messenger. Someone who had seen the battle she was talking about. Was it one of the twins, or someone else?

"That light," Aryum said with a nod. "The grey one you've shown us. Apparently you hold it much better." Yuki nodded. That light, she had been forced to show it before. They had a certain emphasis on it. From her early days in the organization. It was why they needed her.

"What is it?" Yuki asked.

"Well, simply that is Kingdom Hearts," Aryum answered. Yuki frowned. She had been in contact with Kingdom Hearts before. It certainly didn't match up to the feeling from that light. Or at least it didn't seem like the power was the same. "Or at the least her essence. Her power seeping from her to you, through whatever connection it is you share."

"How can I use it?" Yuki asked. At the very least it was powerful. She had been able to drive what remained of the Heartless out of Radiant Gardens with it. It always seemed to overwhelm the others around her. She was starting to be able to remain conscious after its appearance if she could call on it purposely. Maybe it would give them the edge.

"A good question. I'd like to know the answer when you discover it," Aryum said. Yuki sighed her shoulders slumping forward. Aryum laughed, the playfulness of it grating on Yuki's ears. She supposed even Aryum couldn't know everything. "Don't worry. I trust you'll grasp it."

"So, what about X and Y?" Yuki asked. If Aryum had given all she knew about the Kingdom Keeper, maybe she could explain what X had sent Yuki to Kingdom Hearts for.

"I trust they'll sort it out," Aryum said, slipping her cards away again. She placed her arms behind her back and began pacing again, stopping in front of one of the blue-veined rocks. "Fortunately, Light is never without Darkness but in the rarest of cases. She'll at least set aside any difference they might have."

Yuki held back her shudder as she looked over the landscape. Even this far in Darkness there was still light. The same could be said of the twins. Never too far apart. It must have been true, they were gods.

"How long have they been like this?" Yuki asked. Parts of it she could understand, though she didn't much like it. X and Y being gods was manageable. But she didn't understand why they were so human, what had happened or why.

"Light forgot a very long time ago," Aryum said. Yuki huffed, which only amused Aryum as she chuckled. "But they have been in human form for even longer. Some say as long as this path has existed." Yuki's head tilted to the side once again. A new question where she was supposed to get answers.

"Path?" Yuki echoed. Aryum gave another lilting laugh.

"Oh, there are many paths to take," she said. She turned away from Yuki taking a few steps towards the Castle. "But that is a matter for another time. I have one more important thing for you to know."

"What?" Yuki asked. Better not to focus on whatever her new riddle was. It would be better than trying to understand it before Aryum wanted her to know.

"The mark of mastery," Aryum said. Yuki couldn't help the way her head perked up. They hadn't been given much of an update on the test for some time. Not since they were told something was amiss. "I would say it's at its close."

"What's happened?" Yuki demanded.

"Well, as I mentioned from the beginning, it's been a little off the rails," Aryum explained. She chuckled as a glare crossed Yuki's face. They already knew that. They had been holding it over their heads for some time. Putting them even more on edge. "Xehanort has made his move to gain his last piece."

"I remember," Yuki snapped. "But what does that mean?"

"Sora is in danger."

Yuki felt her stomach drop. Sora. Of all the possibilities. Why Sora? He was the last choice she would have guessed. Maybe Riku, he was close to the darkness after all. He had been under Xehanort's control before. But maybe that was why he wouldn't go after Riku again. Sora wouldn't know his tricks. Sora would be easier to lure into his grasp. He was so trusting.

"I'm sure he'll be saved," Aryum said. Yuki wasn't sure she wanted to believe her. "Many have gone to his rescue. But I don't think this test will achieve its goal completely. At worst Sora will join the hearts he shelters."

"What do you mean?" Yuki asked. Sheltering hearts was certainly something Sora was known for. He made connections with others so easily. Roxas and Xion and Namine. All so easily affected by his heart, connected so tightly. But sheltering? Was that why Yuki could so easily pick out Roxas's heart? When he fought against Sora. Not because they had joined, but Sora was merely protecting him?

"You aren't the only one with a party guest," Aryum chuckled. She shifted her weight, the sand shifting under her with a sound so subtle if Yuki hadn't been holding her breath she didn't think she would have heard it. "Sora's just happen to be in worse condition. Well, one of them. But he has three guests? I'm quite sure, that girl is among them. Xion, you called her."

"Xion!?" Yuki gasped. She was still there? Aryum chuckled and gave a nod.

"Yes, indeed," She confirmed. She started her pacing once again, weaving her way along the path closer and closer to the castle. Yuki slowly followed her, staying close enough to hear her next words. "She fights all odds. But she isn't the one that is important. The mirror to yours is."

"The mirror?" Yuki echoed.

"He is far more interesting than he seems," Aryum said with a nod. Yuki held back a sigh. Naturally, she wouldn't get any more. "Even your guest has many secrets that Xehanort has searched for. Protect him."

"Why tell me all this?" Yuki asked. It was hardly helpful. She wasn't sure what she even meant by mirror to her own. Vanitas didn't seem to like the implications of it either, his unease growing the way he always seemed to. She was sure he had never known peace. And with the repetition of Xehanort's name. He was angry. The mirror only making it worse.

"I told you," Ayrum said, flashing a smile. "I think of you as a friend."

"Then why help them for so long?" Yuki asked. She wasn't sure what answer she was looking for. Anything to try and make Aryum and her riddles make sense. But that was too much to ask. Aryum only smiled again, though it might have been more a grin.

"To make sure the path goes as expected," she said. Yuki frowned. Aryum held up her deck once again. Yuki couldn't help the nod of understanding. "And ensure the best results possible. I'm not looking forward to the past changing. I'd quite like you to stop it."

"How?" Yuki asked. They had to be close to stopping them. Only three remained. But they still didn't know how they planned to change the past. There were the now-known pieces. Yuki as the Kingdom Keeper, and the Twins as gods. But what could they do with that? And how could the three of them stop it?

"Meet me in the castle," Aryum said, nodding towards where the castle was on the horizon. "I'll tell you then. Please be sure the twins make it in as well. The clock is ticking."

"We'll be there," Yuki said. It didn't take a moment for her to consider. One way or another, they had to be there.

"Excellent," Aryum said, giving a final smirk as she was swallowed up by a dark corridor.

Yuki once again stood alone in the darkness, only the strange rocks as company. She didn't like the idea of being alone with her thoughts again. Vanitas tended to take advantage of it and before long her mind was spiraling into something dark. Fortunately, she didn't have to be alone for very long.

"Yuki."

It was a relief to hear Y's voice. And not the voice filled with anger, but the one she was used to. The one that had called out to her when they had been on the clock tower together. It was even more of a relief that when she turned to face the voice Y wasn't alone. X was beside her, hands shoved in his pockets. Moving like her shadow.

"Are you two good?" Yuki asked, looking between them. They seemed to be much better than they had been. X didn't look so pale, and Y didn't have the fire in her eyes. She could almost believe they hadn't been fighting recently. Though fighting seemed woefully inaccurate. Fighting didn't convey they had seemed ready to tear each other into tiny pieces.

"We have come to an understanding at least," Y said. She gave X a side long glance, but he did nothing more than nod in agreement. "There's a lot more to talk about, but that's for later." Yuki couldn't help the sigh of relief that left her. It had been what she had hoped for, but not what she had actually expected. Y's anger was something she wasn't familiar with and the idea of it terrified her more than any of the other possibilities she had faced.

"What about you?" X asked. Under his watchful gaze, Yuki was sure she hadn't been able to mask any of the remaining anxiety from Aryum all that well.

"Aryum was just here," Yuki said. X's shoulders slumped and he let out a heavy sigh. Y's eyes narrowed. "I have bad news." Neither twin reacted, she assumed they had known. Aryum rarely brought good news with her.

"What?" Y asked.

"It was Sora," Yuki said. Both X and Y looked up, exchanging a quick glance with one another. "Xehanort went after him. Worst case scenario he ends up like the hearts he's holding."

"What hearts?" X asked.

"Xion, and two others," Yuki answered without pause. She flinched at the blank look X and Y gave her. "I can only guess Roxas is one of them."

"Xion?" Y echoed.

"That black-haired girl in Twilight Town?" X asked, his eyebrows furrowed as he seemed to struggle to recall. Yuki wondered if even though they had seen the shadow it would still fade away again. Back to the nothing it was before.

"Yeah, it's a long story," Yuki said. As much as she would love to explain now wasn't the time. There was still too much to do. "We have to move fast. If we meet Aryum in the castle she'll tell us how to stop Tayressa and Aysui."

"Why would she help us?" Y asked. Yuki gave an exaggerated shrug. She didn't think Y would like the answer she had been given. Yuki could barely wrap her head around the idea, and she didn't want to risk Y's temper resurfacing when she suggested Aryum saw them as some kind of friends.

"It's Aryum," Yuki said instead. "Who knows how her mind works."

"Yuki's right, we need to move," X said. Y shot him a look, seeming to consider his words for a moment before she nodded in agreement. Yuki couldn't help the relief that filled her. It seemed Y was holding true to her word, at least setting aside their differences for the moment.

The journey into the castle was quick, but at the same time, Yuki felt it dragged on forever. The closer to the castle they got the more small Heartless stood in their way. And inside the castle was even worse. They seemed to be never-ending. Yuki wondered if it was in the remaining elite's plans to wear them down before facing them. It would certainly make their jobs easier. 

Aryum was waiting for them on a walkway open to the sky between two sections of the castle. She stood with one arm crossed, cradling her other elbow. Her chin rested in her hand as she grinned at them. Yuki and the twins slowed, stopping on the opposite side of the walkway. Yuki couldn't help glancing up, but luckily there was nothing in the sky above them. No heart-shaped moon she had once been accustomed to.

"Ah, you all made it," Aryum greeted. Her grin turned into a genuine smile. Yuki felt her stomach shift. That was somehow worse than her usual troublesome looks.

"No time for chit-chat," X said. Aryum laughed dropping her arms and placing them behind her back.

"You are quite right," she agreed. Gold eyes looked over them, searching for something. "Now, straight to the point. How to defeat the remaining members. To stop their plan."

"What do we do?" Yuki demanded.

"Come closer," Aryum said. She flashed another grin as she turned her back on them, moving to go deeper into the castle. Yuki cast a wary glance at the twins. Both seemed just as cautious as her, sharing a similar look. Aryum snapped a few times, calling them forward.

Their steps were slow and unsure. Was Aryum going to take them directly to the two other elites? There's no way she would just fight with them suddenly. That would be unusual for her. Too straightforward. She would rather play both sides until the very end. So why did it seem she expected them to follow her?

Aryum suddenly stopped turning to face them again, her signature grin returned. Yuki froze where she was, X and Y stopping on either side of her. Y held her hand out to the side, as if ready to call her keyblade. But it wasn't enough to stop Aryum as she snapped her fingers once. The sharp sound echoed around them.

Underneath their feet was a strange glow. Yuki barely had time to acknowledge the strange pattern under her feet, looking all too similar to the cards in Aryums deck, though far too large. A bright light shot into the sky dispersing with a ringing that didn't seem to end.

"What was that?" Y demanded. Her keyblade was now in her hands, Yuki wasn't sure when exactly that had appeared but she wasn't one to question it. She was on the verge of summoning her keys as well, and sound to her other side said X had summoned his own daggers.

"To stop them they have to get a little farther I'm afraid," Aryum said, shrugging as she came closer to the three. "That will call her to us."

"What the hell?" X hissed.

"There's a few more lessons for you to learn," Aryum said calmly, her cards appearing in her hands. "To tie over to the next story."

"We don't want your riddles!" Y snapped. Aryum only laughed.

"Oh, I know. But that's what makes them fun," she said, She spread her cards out in her hand, carefully scanning through them. She plucked one from her hand before turning it towards them. "Now, before I tell you what your next step is, prove to me you can win."

Yuki summoned her keyblades and rolled to the side just in time to avoid the blast of ice shot towards her. By the time she was on her feet again, X was already launching himself at Aryum. Y had fallen back, her keyblade pointing to the sky as she called out various spells to assist.

Fighting Aryum had its similarities to fighting Luxord. Fortunately, there was no one being turned into cards and dice this time. But the cards of her deck grew in size and she easily used them in her own defense. She was more often summoning magic from within the cards to launch at them and attempt to throw them. Sometimes it seemed she could draw items from the cards, receiving buffs from some and potions from others. 

Aryum fell with a hit from the back side of Twilight Keepers teeth. She let out a shuddering breath as she collapsed to the floor, red spattering on the ground in front of her from the various injuries. Yuki watched as X turned his head and stepped back. Y stepped in front of him, a gentle hand resting on his shoulder.

"What do we do?" Yuki asked, stepping forward towards Aryum. She looked up, gold eyes sparking as the black smoke began to twist off her skin.

"Follow them. Find the Dandelion seeds. They hold the answers," Aryum said. She coughed again, more blood falling from her lips.

"A riddle?" Y asked.

"One you'll know best," Aryum said with a chuckle. She lowered her gaze again, her body slumping forward as she lost what little of her energy remained. "Her goal is simple. But she reaches too far."

Yuki was surprised at the lack of annoyance that filled her. The way no demands for more explanation rose up in her throat. She could only nod slowly as she watched Aryum fade, leaving nothing behind.

"We don't have much time left," Yuki said, turning to X and Y.

"Then let's go," Y said, her orange eyes surprisingly harsh.

"Yeah," X agreed with a short nod. Yuki returned that nod before looking towards the path forward. Deeper into the castle.

There was only one way to go.