After having a thorough look through the district he was in, Sora came across a huge set of double doors which had the sign "Second District" beside them. He gave the heavy doors a pull and walked through them into this new area. As he was walking in, a man cut across his path with a look of terror on his face. He collapsed in front of Sora and a strange glow emanated from his chest. To Sora's horror and disbelief, the man's heart rose from his chest and flew through the air into a strange dark portal. When he looked back to where the man had been lying, there was nobody there. However, where the heart had gone there was a strange creature standing briefly before it vanished. Sora was able to make out a metal helmet on the creature's head and its outfit was hideous shades of red and blue before it dissipated. As he ran forwards to take on anything more sinister, Sora was surrounded by more of the small creatures which he had seen in his dreams. Their yellow, soulless eyes seemed to be staring straight through him with an undeniable hunger.

"It's those creatures from the island!" he shouted out in disbelief when the recognition had dawned on him. His hands suddenly felt heavy and he realised that the strange keyblade which he had fought these creatures with before had once more appeared in his grasp as if from nowhere. He couldn't help once more admire its silver sheen and he loved the feel of the texture of the hilt within his hands. Swinging it unmercilessly, he drove the serrated edge once again into the malevolent black beings which were around him from all angles. Once they had been vanquished, he resumed his search of the town for Riku and Kairi. Before he left the second district, Sora's attention was drawn to an extravagant looking building which stood at the far end. It was incredibly tall with many stained-glass windows and he couldn't resist going into this building to have a look around. As he opened the large stained doors leading into the building, he was unaware that a couple of floors above him, Donald and Goofy had just come out of another set of stained doors.

"Not here, either," Donald muttered with his arms crossed, foot tapping impatiently. Goofy looked around the district as far as his eyes could see.

"This could take a while…" he agreed and the two friends moved on with their search. Inside the building lower down, Sora found the house was as beautiful on the inside as it was on the outside. However, there was a definite atmosphere of sadness and the only occupants he found where a couple of Dalmatian dogs. One of them was a male with black ears who was wearing a red collar while his companion was a female with spotted ears and a blue collar. The male had a very sad and desperate look in his eyes while the female wouldn't look in Sora's direction at all. She simply remained lying where she was and seemed completely indifferent to everything going on around her. Bending down on one knee, Sora ran one hand through the male dog's ears, trying to locate what was bothering him and his mate. The glint of a license tag caught his eye and he looked at it.

"Hey, Pongo," he said gently, "what's wrong?" The Dalmatian's ears pricked up at the sound of his name and he walked over to a wall where he pointed at a picture with his nose. Sora looked at the picture and saw that it contained a number of small Dalmatian puppies. As he counted his way through the overcrowded photograph, he was able to count no less than ninety nine podgy and adorable Dalmatian puppies. One more look at the downhearted female lying on the floor and it dawned on Sora why the dogs were so upset.

"Guess I wasn't the only one to lose someone close to them, huh Pongo?" he whispered softly to the dog at his side. Unable to do anything for them, Sora left the house through the doors he had entered. As he continued his exploration of the Second District, Sora made his way into another building and he just missed Donald and Goofy coming out of the hotel which was in the area. Donald cast his eyes through the district in a similar manner to which Goofy had done a short time ago.

"Hmph, where is he?" he groaned in exasperation. Goofy joined Donald in casting his eyes around the vicinity, calling out "Leeeooon!" as he did so. Meanwhile, Sora found himself in a strange place. The new area he was in was filled with gears and machinery of varying sizes and colours, working away and generating a lot of noise in the process. Making his way further into the room, he found himself once more confronted with legions of the small black creatures which had attacked him outside. They were greater in number than he had encountered them in up to this point, but he was still able to dispatch them swiftly and effectively with the keyblade. Once he had established that neither of his friends were in this building, Sora resumed searching the Second District. Noticing the hotel, he decided to try in there before moving on to the next district. As he walked through the doors leading into the reception, Donald and Goofy just entered the Second District through the heavy doors which led there from the First District.

"Doesn't look like he's here," Goofy stated as he once more cast his eyes over the entire area. Donald folded his arms and began tapping his foot impatiently once more.

"Keep looking!" he snapped and Goofy simply walked further into the Second District to search. Meanwhile, in the hotel, Sora found nothing of great importance. Feeling more and more dispirited and frustrated by the minute, he left the Second District and carried on into the Third District. In this section there was nothing of great relevance, however he was once again ambushed by hordes of the strange black monsters. Once he had dispatched them, he made his way back through the Second District and went back to the Accessory Shop. He didn't have to say anything before Cid spoke to him.

"Still haven't found 'em? Keep your chin up. Take another look around town," he suggested kindly, noting the look of disappointment on the young boy's face. Back outside the shop, Sora didn't go very far before he heard an unfamiliar voice speak to him.

"They'll come at you out of nowhere," he whirled around with the keyblade drawn to face this stranger.

"Who are you?" He found the strange voice belonged to a tall man with a long mane of shaggy brown hair.

"And they'll keep on coming at you, as long as you continue to wield the Keyblade, but why? Why would it choose a kid like you?" The stranger acted as if he hadn't heard Sora's question and he pointed a gloved hand in the direction of the alarmed boy.

"Hey, what's that supposed to mean?" he asked back, anger overtaking the fear which had initially seized him at the sight of this malevolent stranger.

"Never mind, now, let me see that Keyblade," the man demanded while walking towards Sora. Instinctively, Sora moved backwards in order to maintain a distance between himself and his opponent.

"What? There's no way you're getting this!" he shouted back. At this point, Sora took in the features of the person standing before him. Dark blue eyes which contained a fire of determination and purpose looked back at him while a severe-looking scar adorned the bridge of his nose, cutting across from his forehead down to just beneath the eye on the other side of his face.

"All right, then have it your way," the stranger withdrew a large sword the likes of which Sora had never seen before. The blade was very thick while the hilt looked as though it were made from the barrel of a gun. The length of the weapon as well was considerable and it tapered to a very severe point. The two fought in a vicious duel, neither of them giving an inch to their opponent. Sora sustained heavy damage and injuries with each blow that the enormous sword dealt to him, however, he simply refused to give in. Eventually, he was able to reduce the stranger to his knees with the power of the keyblade.

"Now...you're...gonna...you're gonna..." he never finished his sentence, as the toll of his tremendous battle drew him into unconsciousness. As Sora lay on the street unconscious, an unexpected voice drew the man's attention.

"Aw, you're slipping, Leon," he turned and was greeted by a young girl with short hair which was somewhere between black and grey in colour. Her eyes were an unusual purple colour and she wore a band around her head along with a yellow scarf around her neck. The cocky manner in which she had addressed him had Leon slightly irritated as he turned back to look upon Sora's prone form.

"I went easy on him. Looks like things are worse than we thought. A lot worse," he responded. Meanwhile, Donald and Goofy were going through the back alley of Traverse Town, looking for Leon.

"Gawrsh, there's nobody here. Sure is spooky!" Goofy piped up nervously as he looked around uncertainly. Donald frowned and kept walking, determined not to be distracted by his friend's fears.

"Aw, phooey. I'm not scared," he responded after a short time. However, no sooner had he got those words out than someone tapped him on the shoulder. Letting out a squeal of fright, Donald leapt up into the air and onto Goofy's back. Eyes closed tightly in fright, he was too scared to turn around and look at who was behind them.

"Excuse me. Did the king send you?" the voice which asked this question belonged to a young woman, so Donald opened his eyes. Both he and Goofy looked around and gazed upon a girl wearing a long pink dress with green eyes, brown hair and a large red ribbon in her hair. She had a warm and friendly smile upon her face and her eyes shone with joy.

Meanwhile, Sora could see nothing but darkness. It was in the midst of all this black that a familiar voice began speaking to him. It was a voice he would know anywhere and he was glad to hear it.

"Come on, lazy bum. Wake up," when he awoke, he found himself gazing into the warm blue eyes which undoubtedly belonged to his dear friend, Kairi. She smiled down at him and tilted her head to one side while regarding him carefully.

"You okay?" she asked gently. He sat up and shook his head, trying to alleviate the pounding which was coursing through it.

"I guess..." he muttered while taking in the sight of his good friend. What surprised him was that she went into an explanation regarding what had happened to him since he had left Destiny Islands.

"Those creatures that attacked you are after the Keyblade. But it's your heart they really want, because you wield the Keyblade." Sora wasn't really paying attention to what was being said to him, he was just thankful and happy to be seeing Kairi again.

"I'm so glad you're okay, Kairi," he said fondly. A look of confusion passed through Kairi's eyes before she spoke again to him.

"Kairi? Who are you talking about? I'm the great ninja Yuffie," As she said this, her voice changed to one which Sora didn't recognise. As she finished talking, a white flash passed across and with this, Kairi disappeared. The girl standing in front of him Sora had not yet met, but it was the girl with the short hair who had been with Leon before after he had fought with Sora.

"I think you might've overdone it, Squall," she commented while turning to look over at the man whom Sora remembered battling a short time ago in the street. He was leaning against a wall and stepped forward in response to what Yuffie had called him.

"That's Leon," he replied, emphasising the name as he spoke it to her. Sora cast his eyes down to the wall beside Leon and noticed the keyblade resting against it.

"The Keyblade... yeah, we had to get it away from you to shake off those creatures. It turns out that's how they were tracking you," Yuffie explained while walking over to the other side of the room from Sora, standing beside Leon and looking back at the bed once she had finished talking.

"It was the only way to conceal your heart from them. But it won't work for long. Still hard to believe that you of all people are the chosen one," Leon lifted the keyblade up in his hand as he spoke, holding it in midair for it to disappear from his grasp and reappear in Sora's hands.

"Well, I suppose beggars can't be choosers," Leon muttered while walking towards Sora. The whole situation was infuriating and frustrating Sora more and more as it was going on. It seemed like everyone knew something about what was happening to him and yet there were not telling him anything.

"Why don't you start making sense! What's going on here?" As he shouted this at the people in the room with him, he had no way of knowing that just through the wall, Donald and Goofy were having a similar discussion with the young woman they had met in the alleyway.

"Okay, you know there are many other worlds out there besides your castle and this town, right?" she asked them gently.

"Yeah," Donald nodded in acknowledgement of this fact.

"But they're supposed to be a secret," Goofy covered his mouth with his hands as he said this. The girl nodded before speaking again.

"They've been secret because they've never been connected, until now. When the Heartless came, everything changed," she explained.

"The Heartless?" Sora asked, feeling even more confused with the information he was being given. Yuffie cast her eyes over at him from where she was sitting on the bed beside him.

"The ones who attacked you, you remember?" she asked before Leon offered a further explanation into the creatures known as Heartless.

"Those without hearts," he managed to say before Yuffie spoke again.

"The darkness in people's hearts - that's what attracts them," she piped up before Leon shot her a look which let her know to be silent again.

"And there is darkness within every heart," he added before giving Sora time to absorb all of this new information. It was all a bit much for him to take in at the one time, and he didn't have long to try and understand it before Yuffie spoke to him again and asked him a question.

"Hey, have you heard of someone named Ansem?"

"Ansem?" Goofy asked back to the girl who had asked both him and Donald that question in the adjacent room.

"He was studying the Heartless. He recorded all of his findings in a very detailed report," she explained to the two friends. Goofy extended his hands eagerly.

"Gawrsh, uh, can we see it?" he asked her, but as soon as the question was asked, he noticed the girl's eyes filled with disappointment and sadness.

"Its pages are scattered everywhere," she replied, shaking her head sadly.

"Scattered?" Donald asked in slight disbelief.

"Too many worlds," she offered by way of explanation.

"Oh, then maybe the king went to find 'em," Goofy suggested which boosted the spirits of everyone in the room.

"Yes, those were my thoughts exactly," the girl answered, sounding more hopeful and her eyes shone with joy.

"We've gotta find him quick!" Goofy exclaimed and was about to head out the room door when Donald shouted on him.

"Wait! First, we need that "key"!" he reminded his companion. The girl sitting on the bed nodded in confirmation of this.

"That's right. The Keyblade," she said to Goofy.

In the other room, Sora lifted the keyblade from the bed and looked at it all the way along, appreciating the fine detail which had gone into its design.

"So...this is the key?" he asked, trying to make sense of all the information he had just been told regarding himself, the creatures which kept attacking and this mysterious weapon which had come to be in his possession.

"Exactly!" Yuffie confirmed as Sora sat the keyblade back on his lap.

"The Heartless have great fear of the Keyblade. That's why they'll keep coming after you no matter what," Leon explained while walking over to the other side of the room to lean against the wall again. It disgruntled Sora to learn that certain elements of his life had been ripped out of his control and were being decided whether he chose them to be or not.

"Well, I didn't ask for this," he said by way of explanation, in an effort to appease Leon as well as make it clear he had no desire to be linked to the keyblade, that it wasn't an ambition he had held for some time.

"The Keyblade chooses its master. And it chose you," Yuffie explained in a somewhat cheeky manner, but Sora was able to tell she was doing this to lighten his mood towards his fate rather than holding any feelings of resentment towards him for it.

"So, tough luck," Leon commented before leaning against the door.

"How did all this happen? I remember being in my room..." Sora started before a horrible realisation hit him. He gasped with shock before rising to his feet.

"Wait a minute! What happened to my home? My island? Riku! Kairi!" he couldn't help it, as it dawned on him that he really didn't know what had happened to Destiny Islands. His last memory of them was when they had been engulfed in the same darkness which had sucked him up.

"You know what? I really don't know," Leon said gently. Unable to simply stay in the room while his friends were lost somewhere, Sora walked over to the door leading out of the room and spoke with Leon.

"The Keyblade can supposedly unlock almost anything. You're bound to run across treasure chests and other locks, try it out. Sooner or later, the Heartless will find you. You'd best prepare yourself," Leon's words resonated through Sora's ears.

"Prepare yourself?" he queried and Leon simply fixed him with a gaze which was almost challenging to Sora.

"To fight for your life. Are you ready?" he asked, to which Sora only had one reply.

"I'm ready!" Leon turned to Yuffie and called her over to the door.

"Yuffie, let's go join Aerith. She should be there by now with the other visitors," he was cut short however when Yuffie suddenly cried out in fright and pointed across the room.

"Leon!" Both Leon and Sora followed to where she was pointing and could only stare in amazement as the creature which Sora had seen before with the silver helmet and garish colours reappeared in the room. Leon advanced forwards swiftly and pointed to the room door while speaking to Yuffie.

"Yuffie, go!" Not needing to be told twice, she sprinted out the room and sent the door swinging back without paying attention to if anybody was coming towards the room. She had no way of knowing that Donald was just behind the room door, ready to open it.

"Yuffie?" The young girl who was with Donald and Goofy called out after Yuffie before chasing her. Meanwhile Goofy went over to the room door. Leon drew his large sword and Sora got the keyblade ready for battle.

"Sora, let's go!" Sora didn't need to be told twice by Leon before they chased after the monster which had appeared. It leapt through the window of the room and dropped into the alleyway below, where more of its friends were waiting. As they followed the creature, back in the hotel, Goofy pulled the room door back from the wall only to find Donald squashed flat against the wall. Outside in the alleyway, Leon gave Sora some advice before they started fighting.

"Don't bother with the small fry. Find the leader! Let's go!" Side by side, the unlikely friends took on all of the monsters surrounding them and battled their way out of the alley. As they ran towards the Second District, Sora grew more and more curious about the weapon which Leon wielded with such deadly efficiency.

"Leon, if you don't mind me asking, what kind of sword is that you carry?" He finally asked. Leon didn't look back before answering. He explained that the weapon he used was called a Gunblade while the two of them hurried into the Second District. It was here that the two of them decided that the most efficient way for them to flush out the leader of the Heartless would be for them to split up and tackle the First and Third Districts separately. Leon headed for the First District alone while Sora fought his way through the varying kinds of Heartless which appeared while he was making his way to the Third District.