Dark Side

Summary: As a soldier, his job was to defend the light and abhor darkness. It was a job he never thought could be compromised until…he finds a strange circus tent in the middle of the desert and comes face-to-face with the enemy herself. Forbidden romance, a war, and a decision that could change everything…Welcome to the Dark Side.

Chapter 1: That Fateful Day

The sun scorched his back, its rays merciless even as the daylight began to wane. He had been traveling this desert for what seemed like centuries now, but nothing appeared to change except for the sand which oscillated between high dunes and flat plains.

He checked his canteen again, hoping that water would miraculously fill the container, but knowing that it wouldn't. It had been nearly a week since it had been full, and satisfied his, now, raw throat. Almost a week, and yet, there was still no sign of the rest of his platoon or even a well.

'Damn heartless,' the man thought to himself with an angry sigh, 'I knew I shouldn't have gone after it, and now I'm going to die in this God-forsaken desert because of it.'

The man took another few steps, but stumbled as his vision started to blur. He wanted to stop trying, just succumb to the heat and fall into an endless slumber. It would be so easy too…All he would have to do was fall to the ground. He had already dumped his supplies miles ago, and even shed the outer jacket of his camouflage attire.

Plus, what was one dead soldier to an army of millions?

"Promise you'll come home, Daddy?"

His blue eyes snapped open, fighting the haze with newfound strength. That was right. He had made a promise to his son that no matter what happened, he would come home.

"Of course kiddo," He said ruffling his son's coffee colored spikes, "now, you promise me that you'll be good for Aunt Ashe while I'm gone, okay?"

The little boy nodded and hugged his father tightly, "Okay Daddy!"

"I won't let you down…Sora."

With every step he took, the muscles in his legs burned, and the once hidden night stars started to peak through the now hazy sunset skies. It took every ounce of willpower not to stop and ease his bodily aches, but for whatever reason, he just knew that he was mere steps away from a sanctuary.

Yet, it wasn't until he climbed to the top of the next misshapen sand dune that he saw it. Tall, dark and decorated with an array of large balloons, a circus tent seemed to blink in and out of existence as the man opened and closed his eyes.

Maybe it was stupid to approach. With the intense heat, it could simply be a mirage playing tricks on his already foggy mind, but the man was determined. He needed somewhere safe to be until he was well enough to search for his platoon again.

There was music wafting from the tent the closer he came, a haunting yet playful melody that danced alongside the gusts of wind almost mockingly as the soles of his feet burned from their endless trek.

"Almost there," He whispered with dry, cracked lips. So close…

The blond looked up at the entrance of the looming edifice for only a moment before his world suddenly went black.

DSDSDSDS

A pale hand grasped the metal dog tags around his neck, and smiled sinisterly as her dark painted lips pulled into a smirk.

"Roxas, huh?"

DSDSDSDS

When Roxas opened his eyes, he could see nothing but darkness. "Am…Am I dead?" He murmured aloud. His voice wasn't that loud, but it seemed to echo as though he were inside somewhere…

Roxas' eyes widened. "The circus tent! Someone must have found me and—" He tried standing upright, but found himself shackled to the concrete floor, "…What the? W-Why am I chained?" He continued to struggle, but the shackles only rattled noisily, refusing to loosen the slightest around his limbs. "Damn it! Whoever the hell did this better have a good explanation, or I'll—"

"Or you'll what?" A new voice suddenly said. Roxas couldn't see the individual, save for his eerie golden eyes, but he could tell, just by the tone of the man's voice, that he was not to be trusted.

"You don't want to know what I'll do," Roxas growled with gritted teeth. If only he could summon his keyblades…

The golden eyed man laughed, clearly amused by the threat. "My, my, such big talk from the prisoner eh? You know, if I were you, I'd bite my tongue. The Queen doesn't tolerate attitudes like yours, and I'd hate to see you die so soon…"

"Queen?" Roxas barked out an incredulous laugh, "Excuse me as I go hide in a corner."

The man sneered, and pulled the soldier's chain forward. Roxas stumbled and fell back onto the ground, dirt smudging his face. "You should go hide. You're lucky she even let you live. I know I wouldn't have. You denizens of the light are nothing but trouble."

"Denizens of the light? What are you denizens of—"

"Darkness?" the man finished with a smirk, "Considering who our monarch is, I'd say the answer is pretty obvious."

"Monarch? I thought we lived in a republic."

The golden eyed figure snorted. "You might, but around here, only the Queen is in charge."

"Wait," Roxas said. He had forgotten one very important thing. "If this is supposed to be a monarchy, then where's the castle? Don't most Queens have castles?"

"The Queen doesn't like being conspicuous," the dark denizen explained curtly.

Roxas retorted sarcastically. "Yes and a huge, black circus tent is the most inconspicuous thing in the world."

"You'd be surprised, and it's not like we stay in one place for long. This is a traveling circus after all," the man said.

"And you…perform?"

"Isn't that implied?"

Roxas angrily shook his head. This was getting him nowhere. "If all you do is perform, then how are you considered dark and why won't you let me go?"

"Ugh…," the man groaned, "You'd think for a light bearer, this would be fairly obvious, but I suppose, you'll just have to meet the Queen to find out…"

Roxas' eyebrows furrowed, but abruptly saw the golden eyed man's figure approach him. The soldier tensed automatically, but was surprised when he felt the shackles drop like heavy weights onto the ground. Roxas stretched his wrists, rubbing the sore spots. Maybe if he just….

"Don't even think about running away," The man warned, and Roxas heard the snap of fingers from the shadows before seeing the faint glimmer of steel. "Our guards would catch you even before you set a foot outside of this dungeon, and besides," The mocking glint returned to the man's eyes as he sneered. "We wouldn't want anything to happen to that pretty face of yours, now would we?"

Roxas clenched his fists, but sighed. There was no way out. He would just have to play along until he could figure out a way to escape. Who knew? Maybe the 'Queen' would even release him?

DSDSDS

The man, who introduced himself as Vanitas, led him through the murky dungeon, up several flights of decaying stairs, and down nearly ten corridors before stopping at a set of ebony doors. Roxas looked behind him and mentally noted the guards still positioned behind, dressed in sheets of heavy armor that made the soldier wonder how they could possibly move with all that weight.

"This is so bizarre," Roxas shook his head and eyed Vanitas skeptically, "How does this all even fit in here? Don't you have to have a place to perform too?"

"Trust me goldie locks, everything works out. Besides, if I were you, I'd be worrying about that pretty little head of yours now. You are about to face the Queen."

Roxas resisted the urge to roll his eyes. "Yeah, whatever. Let's just get on with this. I haven't got all day."

"My, my," Vanitas said with a cackle, "someone certainly is impatient. Very well." He pushed open the set of doors, ushering Roxas through with a sardonic gesture.

Roxas sucked in a breath of confidence and walked into what could only be the throne room. No windows lined the dark walls, and the only light that was permitted came in a colorless kaleidoscope of shards from the single onyx chandelier looming above the center of the room. The floor seemed to be made of a similar substance, and as Roxas walked, he was afraid that the reflective floor could crack, sending him into unknown oblivion. As he drew closer, however, he began to see the outline of a figure perching elegantly yet sensuously on a throne composed of entirely black crystal. One long ivory leg hung over an arm of the throne while a hand, fingernails painted black, draped itself across the other arm. Roxas could even see her eyes—a pair of crystalline ice. So beautiful, and yet jagged, deadly.

Her lips, stained dark red, finally opened as she eyed the blonde soldier from afar. "So, you've finally brought my toy soldier to me? I was getting a little worried that you had forgotten…"

"Never your majesty," Vanitas replied, pushing Roxas forward. He stumbled to the foot of the throne and fell to his knees, tearing yet another hole in his uniform.

"He certainly has a lovely face," The Queen purred as one of her snow white hands gripped his chin. Roxas scowled, earning a bell like laugh from the woman. She removed her hand and used it to flip her pale blonde hair over her shoulder. The black dress she wore was form fitting, hugging her curves as a long slit neared her thigh.

"I don't have time for games!" Roxas spat angrily as he stood up, "I've had enough of this place. I need to return to my platoon now!"

The Queen shook her finger at Roxas mockingly. "Now, now pet. You can't be leaving us so soon. After all, if I let you leave, that would only give me more problems, and no one wants that."

There was a quite murmur that echoed throughout the shadowed space, and Roxas suddenly realized they weren't alone. Several other people lurked in the gloom of the room.

"How could I cause you problems?" Roxas asked, though his heart sunk with a gut feeling the longer he watched her.

With an eerie smile, the Queen flashed a set of winter white teeth. "Oh, that's simple. If I let you go, then all of my plans for domination are ruined, and we can't have that, can we?"

"Wait," Roxas paused, swallowed, and abruptly paled. "Y-You're the one b-behind all of t-this!?" Roxas' hands were shaking as he stretched his arms out.

"Why, of course," The Queen said with a giggle, "which means that you, my dear, are my little toy soldier until I deem otherwise."

Roxas wanted to scream, scale the walls, draw out his Keyblades, and leave, but he kept his tone level. "I'll escape," He muttered darkly, "You can't keep me here forever. I'm going to find my platoon and we're going to win this war."

The Queen's benign expression suddenly shifted, and her eyes became two glaciers. Without a word, she stepped forward until they were only inches apart. Her breath was hot on his skin, and Roxas forced himself to retain a steely expression. "You are my toy soldier until I deem otherwise," She repeated with a snarl, and Roxas unexpectedly felt a searing pain course throughout his body. It brought him to his knees again.

The sweet expression returned to her features. She ignored the gasping from her prisoner as she quietly whispered. "Enjoy your stay."

DSDSDS

A/N: Another idea that can qualify under the teaser or trailer category of my writing. I really enjoy writing a dark Naminé. I don't know why, but I find it entertaining. It's also fun to have a daddy Roxas, and to be honest, this is like a new and improved combination of two early stories of mine i.e. When You're Gone and Your Guardian Angel except there's no vampires, just a circus which will be very interesting and will require some video watching to remind myself what everything looks like. I also hope this isn't too odd lol.

This story will probably be 20 chapters at most and will include pairings like: RokuNami, VenFuu, possibly Sokai (they would be children wit crushes on one another), and a sprinkle of Haynette.

Please Review, alert, and favorite if you want this to be continued and not scrapped!