Introduction

One world split into many. One war waged for light. Three guardians watched over the people, waiting.

One by one, the people joined them in the Void.

One by one, they ceased to exist.

Chaos, Peace, neither one truly reached. Neither one truly balanced. But this was the plan. They wanted there to be a tip one way or the other for each world. For each person. After all, life was a game to these two. And while Peace was light, he still held darkness. While Chaos was darkness, she still held light. They were both twisted in their own ways.

Peace looked at those in his kingdom, those who had been deemed worthy of a death of calamity. Two women, a woman named Mana and another named Emiko, sat playing chess together, gazing out into the Realm of Life every now and then. He knew what they were doing. They were watching the children they had left behind.

"How dangerous are these Keyblades?" Mana asked absentmindedly, moving a pawn onto the battle field.

"Dangerous," Emiko replied, "but manageable." Mana nodded at the reply. Emiko moved her own piece after careful examination of the board, hesitating before making the move official. "Checkmate."

"I was worried you would notice that."

"I almost didn't believe you would leave yourself open like that. I thought I was wrong."

"I was hoping you would." The two women chuckled and turned their attention back to the images of their children. "My daughter has grown up to be a wonderful woman, protecting the kingdom I left behind well. She's one of the universe's best warriors."

"I'm curious about that boy. What was his name? Sora? How has he become so strong on his own? He's almost as strong as..." She trailed off and shook her head, pushing the thought out of her mind.

"What about your son?" Mana asked, looking at him curiously. "Mizu raised him well, but he wasn't much of a fighter before. I'm sure you had higher hopes for him."

"In all fairness, he didn't start fighting until he absolutely had to. I began fighting when I was just a child. I hope my gift to him will help, though, and that Guardian of Darkness seems to be teaching him well."

"Saturn? The child is a good warrior. Still just a baby himself, though."

"He's three thousand years old, Mana."

"I'm still older."

"I fear many will misunderstand my son's alliance with him. They don't understand that Guardians of Darkness aren't evil. I always wish it was I that were training him, but alas, I fell to...him."

"All in the name of science he claims," Mana spat and reset the chess board, "It's all lies."

"It could be true," Emiko replied, "He could truly believe he's conducting an experiment, but a piece of me believes he knows the evil he's committing. The murder."

"All because he wants to break the law," Mana mumbled, shaking her head.

"It's more than that," Emiko replied. She was now watching Sora and his companions travelling to a new world, lost in the scene playing out before her. It changed to Kairi, standing alone on the beach of Destiny Islands. "She won't be safe long if her powers aren't awoken."

"Her guardians are already fifty steps ahead of you," Mana replied, "Not to mention my daughter has already told her. Gave her her powers herself."

"Well, it would seem Queen Mizu is on top of things."

"She wanted to keep as many people out of this mess as possible, but now...now it's war. She knows she can't keep them out of the loop anymore."

"The question is, will she be able to help everyone she wants to?" Man sighed and shook her head.

"I can tell you first hand that that's impossible. No matter what she does, what magic she uses, she won't be able to help everyone she loves. As much as she's tried not to, she's made too many friends, loved ones, to help them all. She'll have to let some go to help others."

"Isn't that how life works?" Emiko asked sadly.

"So, how was it that you came about your death?" Mana asked. Emiko looked up at her in confussion. "We've played chess many times since you arrived here, yet we've never explained how we died to each other. So, how did you die." Emiko finally moved. A white pawn.

"I was killed by Xehanort," she replied, "While I was a scientist and mother first, I was also a warrior, as I already told you. I had two friends from other worlds who were also warriors, and they informed me of his whereabouts and doings. I couldn't raise a child in a world where that man was allowed to do as he pleased, so I left my son at the castle gates and went after him. Little did I know he fought dirty." Mana's gaze found itself to her face yet again, her eyes telling the other woman to explain. "One slash to the stomach was the fatal blow. Funny. We had fought for hours. We traded plenty of blows that would have killed any normal person, but it was that one slash that led to my death. It wasn't quick, either. He just...left me there to die. Esmeraude and Saphir found me, but they were too late to save me. All they could do was hold me in their arms as I died a slow, painful death. The last thing I did was take Ember Celica off my wrists and tell them to give them to my son."

"Your weapons?" Mana asked and moved. A black pawn, face-to-face with Emiko's, taunting her.

"Yes. The ones that had protected me for years. They were the only thing I had to give him that could protect him in my absence. I never imagined Queen Mizu would happen into his life. I'm very greatful for how she raised him." Mana nodded again. Her eyes had turned back to the fountain that allowed them to see the living ones.

"How did you come about the weapons?" Emiko thought for a moment, trying to remember.

"It's a little hazy, but I believe a man name Taiyang Xiao Long gave them to me. He said he couldn't get back to his home unless he did. He had wound up in our dimension from another."

"How did that happen?"

"I never asked. He gave them to me and left."

"So, why did you leave your son with the king?" Mana asked, looking at the boy yet again. No, she thought, boy wasn't the right word. He was king now, since the one before him, the man that raised him, was dead. He was a man now. Perhaps too soon.

"I used to work for the king. I thought he would keep him safe. I was right, for the most part."

"But, your husband-"

"Ex-husband, and the man was incompetent. He would let his children beat my son to death. I couldn't let that happen."

"You gave the king a good heir."

"I did, didn't I? He does seem to be doing well. It's sad his people don't accept him as their king, though."

"He works so hard to keep the peace, yet all they want to do is burn him at the stake. It's just like my daughter. Just like me."

"So, how did you die?" Mana chuckled darkly at the question, evoking more curiosity from her companion.

"Me? I was beheaded by my subjects. They believed me to be a witch. They made Mizu watch." Emiko's eyes widened in horror.

"What-"

"It's a curse we mermaids must carry. Thankfully she was taken by an old friend. Her daughter has been by her side ever since, the two inseperable. Isago serves as a very loyal advisor."

"Why would they do that to you?"

"Terrans fear what they do not understand. They destroy it if they can. Mana was forced into hiding until she was in control of her powers and was able to take control of her people."

"She no longer has that hold, though?"

"No. They all believe they can take care of themselves, that they don't need a queen to rule over them. The fools. They've effectively destroyed their planet and they're destroying each other as well. Terrans are...incapable creatures. Hell, the animals are smarter than them."

"You have to give them credit for surviving."

"Perhaps, but for how much longer?"

"I don't have the answer to that."

"Your son, he looks a lot like you." Emiko didn't know where the comment had come from, but she nodded nonetheless.

"Unfortunately, he looks more like his father."

"You really hate him, don't you?"

"He hated us. When we got married, he was a great man, but after our son's birth..."

"What?"

"He told me to throw him on the streets at one point, let him die in the cold. That was when I'd had enough."

"Well, he was obviosuly wrong. Look at what your son's become." Emiko smiled a little and looked back at the image of her son, frowning at the dark circles under his eyes. He was stressed and couldn't sleep, was too thin from not eating, too weak from everything taking its toll on him.

"A king," she said softly. "He doesn't really look it yet."

"It takes time. He hasn't been in the position long. Trust me, he'll learn how to balance dealing with the people and taking care of his health."

"If the people learn to accept him as their king."

"They will, I promise." Emiko nodded and looked back at the board. Mana had forgotten about their abandonded game of chess, but she didn't feel like finishing. They had played too many games for one session.

"Let's call it a draw this round," she said, "I think it's time to let our minds rest."

"Yes, that sounds good to me," Emiko replied and watched the board and its pieces disappear. Peace chuckled and walked away from the two women, intrigued by the people they had been talking about. He had many things in store for all of them.