Though it was usually in his nature to respond to praise he received from others, there was this small part of Kai’s mind that told him to simply remain quiet. Maybe it was the voice of reason that told him not to do it. It’s funny, the voice of reason was always Aira. She knew exactly how to keep Kai tame and not dig too much into the praise he often received from people. She knew what to say to remind him that he shouldn’t soak it all up all the time. He was a humble boy underneath it all.

At times like this… [color=20b2aa]“At times like this, I really miss you, Aira.”[/color]

“Hm?” Yuffie asked, looking over to Kai.

[color=20b2aa]“Ah, it’s nothing - just mumbling to myself.”[/color]

Yuffie gave Kai a look, though she seemed to give up not long after.

Though Kai dodged that bullet, he was stuck on the thought of his dear friend. He wondered if her captors were taking good care of her. He had no idea who The Darkness was nor did know the extent they would go to make sure whatever they were planning went without a hitch. He was just a kid from Twilight Town. He wasn’t some intergalactic fighter like Yuffie and Cielle was. He didn’t understand half of the things that were happening around him and to him. It also didn’t help his cause that, whenever he stared long and hard at Cielle, he was reminded of Aira.

Being stuck in his own head, Kai had no idea that they were already at the Third District. More to the point, Kai ran into Yuffie, almost knocking her over. 

“Wha-hey! Watch it, Kai!”

[color=20b2aa]“Sorry,”[/color] Kai apologized, being uncharacteristically minimal in his words.

“You okay there?”

Kai nodded, looking forward. And there, with a weird gun-like sword, he saw a man who looked far older than Kai imagined he would be. He was a man with long, dark locks, wore a fur-like coat, and pants. He moved rather fast and Kai could tell he knew exactly what he was doing, though his opponent was no slouch either. It was an odd-looking foe. Kai gathered it was a heartless when he saw the emblem on its head. But, again, Kai’s mind went to the way it looked. It was like a hollow suit of armor.

[color=20b2aa]“What in the--”[/color] Kai couldn’t move. Unlike previous times when he would jump head-first, he was frozen solid. The big suit of armor was intimidating, yes, but it was something else. Kai has seen it before. [color=20b2aa]“This is...Guard Armor…”[/color]

But how did Kai know this?