AN: I've been writing this for a while, and it's a biggie. I have this whole convoluted plan for it, and some pieces have been written ahead of time.
I do not own Kingdom Hearts, but I do own the OCs in this story.
The first thing she can wrack from her memories is a ferocious battle between two hooded figures. The taller, burlier man in his black cloak lunged forward at the leaner figure. The leaner figure, slightly shorter, dodged backward. His blond spikes bounded and bounced from their slightly revealed spot underneath his hood as his dual, key-shaped blades swung behind him. As dual blades clashed and gave of sparks with Soul Eater, the third hooded figure swung her two blades at the continuous waves of Heartless that gathered around the battle.
The Neoshadows savagely attacked the girl, ravaging and slashing at her body when she would make the odd misstep. A few times, she lifted a gloved hand up vertically to cast a green light over her and her blond companion. Then, just as quickly as they had come, the shadows were eliminated at her hands. She raised Fairy Harp and Spellbinder upwards, blowing across their key tops like smoke gun barrels. The boy ran by her side once, panting a breathy "Thanks" in her ear before guarding another blow from the burly man. He stabbed forward, nicking the boy's arm and earning a swept kick to the head from the female.
The two younger attackers stood side by side when the burly man cleared from his daze. Growling, he shook his head and assumed an offensive position again. They both raised their weapons in defense. The blond boy slid himself in front of the girl, standing firmly between her and their attacker. She was caught of guard for a moment at his protective stance, but let not her weapons fall.
"Step down Roxas. Both of you need to learn a lesson."
The blond tense up more, snapping back.
"No! Leave us alone!"
The girl piped up.
"We're not here to cause trouble. We're trying to disappear. Back off, Riku."
The voice caught his attention, and the familiarity made him act. Bolting forward in a flash, the tall figure shoved Roxas to one side and pushed the girl to the ground. As she began to fall to the ground, she tried to regain her balance-losing her hood in the process. She just barely landed on the ground, kneeling on one knee, ready to push herself upwards. Roxas also quickly countered Riku's attack after losing his hood, recovering and slicing into his side with both of his keyblades. The impact threw his large figure across the way, landing a few meters away.
Roxas snarled, turning to help his companion off the ground. He offered her a gloved hand to her as his blue eyes burned lasers into Riku's body.
"Don't touch her." He hissed quietly, helping his friend off of the ground.
Riku pushed himself to look at the two, still on the ground.
"...Nami. How could you? How could you join the Organization?!"
The female frowned at him, her sapphire eyes filled with flames.
"Listen, Riku. I don't know who 'Nami' is. Stop trying to psyche me out."
Riku stood, holding his side as her nursed his injury. His confusion showed, as he muttered his thoughts aloud.
"How could she...Sora...Roxas needs to return to..."
Roxas scoffed, rushing towards Riku again. This time instead of a fair balance between the two, a dark aura engulfed the older boy. His 'manly' figure, now revealed from underneath his hood, emerged as Ansem, which made the girl cringe. Roxas continued to rush towards him, although a bit more alert now. She armed her keyblades again and called towards him.
"Be careful, Rox!"
"I got it."
'Riku' chuckled, and tossed Roxas roughly away from him with a sweep of his arm. Roxas fell into a heap, rolling and coming to a stop on his side as the breath left him. The female gasped, but extended her keyblades at each arm and ran towards him with determination as well. Riku did the same to her, tossing her across the square in a heap where her breath escaped her lungs.
"Mixa!" Roxas cried, lifting himself up. He faced Riku and let out a grunt of frustration.
"You bastard!"
She struggled to stand, hearing the battle from behind her but not registering much else. Her head was bleeding...she must have knocked her head against the concrete...
As the darkness came over her, a familiar swishing sound came to her ears.
A dark portal...
...Roxas!
Mixa tried and tried to will her body to move. But nothing happened, as the asphalt and neon lit square disappeared from her sight and darkness overcame her.
In her subconscious, a bright light came to her.
The brunette stood in the white abyss. Confused, she rubbed the sore on the back of her head while she scanned the area. She caught sight of a door. It was visibly mechanical and blue and seemed to be the only object in the bright abyss. With an eyebrow raised, she threw caution to the wind and stepped towards the door. Still nursing her head as she reach it, the door whirled and opened as it split in two halves and slid into each side.
Inside the door awaited a laboratory. Instantly, Mixa gripped her forehead and cringed. Something flashed and blinded her as she took in the scene.
"This looks...all so...familiar..."
Something replayed in the back of her mind. A hooded figure walking across the lab with a limp woman in its arms. She wore an elegant dress of periwinkle as she lie unresponsive in the figure's arm.
'Who...is she...?'
"Mixa."
The voice broke her from the memory. She noticed that she was gripping the side of the entrance. Examining the room again, she noticed the man in a white lab coat sitting in a rotating chair at a huge computer, facing her. The next thing she noticed was the red mechanical eye staring right back at her next to his greyish-blue, human eye. His hair was a greying brown, and combed neatly as curls formed against the side of his head. His arms were crossed over his chest. His coat sleeves were pushed upwards, revealing his toned muscles and scarred skin.
"Who are you?" her eyes darted back up towards his human eye. He examined her for a moment, and then chuckled.
"Aren't there more pressing matters...like the well being of your friend?"
She remained quiet with a cautioned eyebrow raised, a bit sceptical but puzzling over how to approach the situation. The man's icy stare remained on the brunette, before he laughed again.
"Now now, I'm not asking for anything for the information I'll be giving you, you can be sure of that. Think of it as...information due to our common interests."
The scientist smiled genuinely at her, waving his hand at a rotating lab chair next to him. Mixa stood still for a moment or two before slowing lowering herself into the chair. The man's smile turned into a smirk as he rotated to face his computer.
"Excellent. I knew you'd come around. Let's bandage that wound of yours first."
With a roll of bandages in hand, the lab coated man stood behind her chair and reached to patch up the wound underneath her thick ponytail. Mixa sharply turned her head, hostility and a protective front clear in her eyes.
"Watch yourself, pal. You may be here to help me, but I'll have to hear your plan before I make my decision."
The scientist gave a hearty laugh, finishing his gentle work and quickly returning to his seat. His cursor trailed across the screen and hovered over an object when he double clicked on it.
"Just as snippy as I remember, excellent. So..."
The file expanded across the screen, and Mixa gasped when she saw herself in the moving image. The man she had battled was carrying her over his shoulder and strapping her inside some sort of mechanism. The scene was blue, as the room glowed in unnatural computer light. Little devices lined the room, and a huge monitor had a glowing figure of a teenager on it.
"Riku! That bastard...he..." she balled her hands into fists as she stood from the seat. Then her eyes widened and she pointed to the screen. "Wait a minute...what is he doing with me!?"
"Very observant, please...sit." The man scoffed, gruffly urging the girl to sit. She did so, impatiently grunting as she crossed her arms. "I know you want to rescue your friend, but please be patient."
He clicked on another object, and a familiar backdrop caught her eye.
"Twilight Town! But...what does Twilight Town have to do with this...?"
Lab Coat, she had unofficially dubbed him, narrowed his eyes at the screen.
"There is a man, who is trying to lure me out hiding. You see...I have something very relevant to something that he wishes to restore-" He paused and wracked his brain. It took him a moment to think before responding to the girl. "And he's trying to eliminate both your ability and Roxas' ability to foil his plans."
"Foil his plans? Just...what is he planning?" the brunette asked suspiciously. Lab Coat folded his hands in his lap and glanced at the ground.
"He is trying to erase Roxas from existance, in short. And by kidnapping you as well, he is trying to use you as a gambling chip for me, a keybearer on the dark side for the possession he wants."
She was glancing at her hands in her lap, where they had turned white from the grip she had used to force them into fists. "Use me and...erase...Roxas?"
Quiet for a moment and only accompanied by the sounds of the many computers in the room beeping. Lab Coat cleared his throat and rotated to face the computer again.
"I understand if you're not willing to cooperate due to my selfish needs to-"
Her head shot upwards and she gazed at him intensely. "I'm willing. What needs to be done?"
Lab Coat gave a little smirk to her, pleased that she would join him, and quickly focused on his computer once more with furrowed eyebrows.
"Here's the plan, my dear. There is a boy in this virtual Twilight Town that THIS man is creating." Another few clicks and an image appeared on the screen depicting a man in a red cloak with a bandages face. The girl narrowed her eyes at the image. So this was the man trying to erase her closest friend! Well, that wasn't going to happen!
"His name is...DiZ. Short for Darkness in Zero. Anyway, there's a boy...I need you to locate him. I'll work some computer magic to help you in accessing the virtual town-"
"But, I'm already getting into the town-isn't that what they're doing here in the video?" She stood from her seat again and pointed to the window on the screen that was paused on the frame they had been watching. Lab Coat chuckled, typing into the computer once more.
"They THINK they'll be getting you in and rearranging your memories so you won't be a threat. But...if you'll cooperate with me, I'll cause a problem in the transfer that will keep you off their radar."
Mixa glanced around the room. Did she really want to work with some man she just met...and another thing...wasn't she just unconscious? How was she on the computer screen...
But there was only this way to save Roxas.
"One more thing, Mixa."
The brunette turned towards him, awakened from her thoughts.
"When you're in virtual Twilight Town...you might wanna use an alias."
"Alias? What did you have in mind?" She stood up from her chair, stepping into the middle of the room as she followed the man in the lab coat.
"Well...how about Nami? That might throw them off the trail, no?" He turned away from her. A hidden smirk crossed his features once more, as the girl gripped her aching head once more.
"Watch out Nami!"
"Hey, Duckface, casting a Cura would be nice!"
"Wha-Ohhh stop complaining!"
"Now Donald...here you go, Nami!"
Mixa shook herself from the daze, keeping her glance on the ground.
"I'll do it. But...Roxas..."
"No problem, dear. You're free to work on saving your friend. As long as you hold your end of the bargain."
The man extended his arm to the door she came in through. He escorted her across the room, hand on the small of her back. Both of their boots clacked against the deep blue tiles. She saw the room begin to funnel behind her as she progressed towards the door, until it felt like the walls were tightly hugging her sides and her breath came out shorter and shorter.
"W-wait! How will I know who the boy is!? I don't even know what he looks like!" She protested as her vision began to blur in a white light. The last remnants of the room-the mechanical door she entered through, spun out of control as a bright light flashed repeatedly.
Mixa squinted and gripped her black cloak as the world spun around her.
When she opened her eyes, the sunlight caught her eye. Shielding her eyes with her now ungloved hand, she heard a loud chugging nearby. One of the trams passed her by, and Mixa blinked owlishly.
Softly, something whispered to her. It was gentle, and seemed to come from inside her head.
"You'll know."
At first, the virtual town was quiet and deserted. But after configurations were made, it was easier and easier to see how digital and artificial it really was. Mixa wandered around the once familiar town for a few hours, as time seemed to be completely stopped. Then, figures formed out of data files right in front of her very eyes.
When one of the shopkeepers formed in front of her nose as she leaned over the counter, Mixa lost her balance and fell backwards-gripping where her heart was supposed to be. After the so-called organ fell from her throat, she breathed a sigh and stood again, dusting off herself and deciding she should begin her search from higher ground. Also, she was quick to dodge the confused look of the shopkeeper when she scuttled away with a hand next to her face.
Since the transfer, her attire had returned to the gear she had during her first visit to Twilight Town. Her chest piece folded over her chest, forming a y-shape with the ends of the secure edges. Attached were two flaps-one at the front and the back. Mixa had beige pants, and a long sleeve beige shirt underneath her one piece red and black robe. Her boots remained similar to her organization boots, black with orange clasps.
As she sat on the edge of the clock tower, she held her black cloak in her lap. The folds slid over her fingertips. Her fingers traces the visible white seams while she sat in deep thought. So many random things happened at once. She tried to run away with Roxas to learn the truth about herself, ended up being kidnapped by a man with ulterior motives, and being thrown even more into the mystery of herself by a random scientist who entered her subconscious to form a rescue plan with her.
Yet...Lab Coat seemed to know a lot more about her then he let on.
Not to forget those memory flashes...what were those?
Her hands scrunched her leathery cloak between her fingers, before she ran them through her thick ponytail, and strands of the hair against her head. A frustrated huff later, she stowed the cloak in a random crate on the tower roof and inhaled deeply.
Alright. Time to star-
SWISH.
A thin, white figure slid through the air, followed by two more of its companions.
The brunette perked up immediately, eyes widening. Quickly replaced with determined orbs, her eyes followed the figures as they flew towards the Main Street. Mixa adjusted into an offensive position and leapt from the tower, grabbing a few small ledges on her way down to cushion her fall.
'Dusks! Here!? That means the Organization is here too!'
That was something to look forward to at least. She ran after the Dusks.
She made it as far as the small shops near the Tram Common before she lost the Dusks. Cursing, she kicked a rock across the brick interlock street. Sapphire orbs followed the little rock as it tumbled into the sandlot. It stopped at the combat boots of a delinquent that she remembered observing during her mission visits to Twilight Town.
The light blond boy had a posse in which he used to bully the town, she recalled as she caught wind of their commotion. Another group of teens were confronting the bully, their faces towards Mixa. Immediately she caught the cerulean eyes of her companion and something in her chest shook back and forth.
'Wow, good thing this town is small! That's one objective down.'
Roxas gave the bully a frustrated look. Glancing downwards, he spotted the Struggle bats at the bully's feet. His eyes darted back upwards as he ran for one, turning around and facing him offensively.
The bully scoffed, saying something about him not knowing what he was dealing with before facing Roxas head one. The other teens who stood with Roxas looked on with different emotions.
There was a blond, aggressive looking boy in camo who looked thrilled that Roxas was prepared to beat the bully's ass. A brunette girl covered her mouth with both hands, her emerald eyes scanning the scene with worry. The last, plump boy with brown spiky locks looked on neutrally, but a mischievous look clouded over his eyes.
Mixa missed the battle without meaning to, but was up to speed when the bully's friends were mNaming excuses about his loss. A silver haired girl and a tanned boy stood in front of the teen kneeling on the ground.
"Seifer's not feeling so hot, y'know!?"
"Tournament decides."
Roxas dropped his offensive position and nodded, turning to his friends with an expression Mixa couldn't see from her angle. At that moment, the Seifer boy rose to his feet and began to rush at Roxas for a surprise clock to the head.
Before the blond friend of Roxas' could holler a warning, Mixa had instinctively rushed forward and grabbed a remaining Struggle bat from the ground. She slid in between the two boys in time to viciously counter Seifer's blow, disarming him when his bat flew from his hands and across the playing area.
The teenagers looked on with surprise at the girl, as her eyes narrowed at Seifer.
"How dishonourable. Trying to claim an unfair victory after admitting defeat. Disgraceful." She scoffed with a smirk, watching the colour drain from his face.
Seifer's brow furrowed as his burning glare met Mixa's cool, composed eyes.
"You punks are going to get yours. Starting with you, chick."
Mixa scoffed and snarled. "Bring it."
Another piercing glance later, Seifer's gang scampered off, tails between their legs. She stared after them. Just as troublesome as she remembered.
A snap shot caught her attention, mNaming her turn around to face the other group of teenagers. Roxas, who had been standing adjacent to her, glanced back as well. The chubby boy was holding a Polaroid camera. The little film printed from the machine and landed onto his palm.
Roxas approached his friends, who all crowded around to see the picture. Mixa shoved her hands into her pockets awkwardly, keeping a bit of distance between them.
A swish later, a Dusk had circled the circumference of the chubby boy and snatched the picture away.
"W-Whoa!"
The grey being landed with a 'plop' on the ground in front of them and scampered away, swaying side to side as it did so.
"It must be the picture thief!" The other blond boy shouted through gritted teeth. Roxas nodded sharply to his friends, caught Mixa's eye for a brief moment, then ran off after the Dusk with his struggle bat over his shoulder.
Well...so much for that...
"Hey...thanks for stepping in there with Seifer!" The brunette girl beamed at her. Embarrassed, Mixa scratched her cheek awkwardly as her face flushed lightly.
"Ah-no problem!"
The photographer slid into the conversation next, poking his head around the brunette girl.
"I haven't seen you around-did you just move here?"
'Quick! What do I say, damn it! Ah...what's that place called...'
After her internal panic, she glanced back up. The three teenagers were looking expectantly at her.
"Err, yeah. I moved into Sunset Terrace recently. My name is...Nami." She tilted her head to one side and smiled to the friendly teens. "It's nice to meet you all."
The rougher looking boy let the small smile pass over his lips before speNaming up. "Hayner." He curtly responded.
The chubby boy shook her hand eagerly. "I'm Pence! You look like you're a pretty good Struggler, with those moves."
The girl, lastly, waved politely at her before folding her hands in her lap. "My name's Olette. Welcome to Twilight Town!" Olette bowed, and after an awkward squeak from Mixa, the other brunette bowed in response.
'Ugh...I've never been good at introductions...' Inwardly, Mixa kicked herself.
Now acquainted with the teens, the brunette cleared her throat. "Anyway...you guys mentioned a thief?"
Pence's eyes lit up. "Oh yeah! Roxas ran after 'em."
Olette brushed a strand of hair from her face. "We're having trouble with a _ thief. Not just the _. The word too!"
Mixa blinked, piecing together Olette's sentence before continuing. "That's no ordinary thief."
A voice shouted towards them. Mixa glanced over her shoulder, seeing Hayner across the way.
"Hey, we gotta help Rox! No time for breaks!"
The other two nodded sharply, rushing by the girl.
"We'll catch you later, Nami!"
She watched them run off towards the blond. Sighing in relief, she suddenly shot forward with a burst of speed and scaled the building closest to the Tram Common entrance. With a valiant leap over the arched gateway, she landed safely on another roof across the way. While throwing the black coat back over her shoulders, she expertly balanced along the grey concrete wall separating the town from the forest and abandoned mansion in the distance.
The hunter had to catch up with Roxas before he seriously got hurt. Judging by the moves he tried to express against Seifer...things were not looking promising. The muscles bunched up in her strong legs before she leaped from the thin wall, ultimately relaxing again. With another 'thump', the brunette landed in a bundle of leaves. Up ahead, the loud crunch of leaves caught her attention. The blond boy was only a few meters behind the silvery creature. Both figures disappeared through the trees towards an orange light, signalling an opening in the trees.
Through the shadows she travelled, keeping very silent through the leaves and brush. She paused just at the mouth of the opening to the clearing in front of the mansion gates. Roxas faced the Dusk head-on, a determined scowl on his handsome features. The girl felt a stir in her memories at his familiar expression, and softly dulled the pain with a rub to the area on her chest.
"There's no way he can defeat our Dusks with a Struggle-"
At the mention of the bat, it seemed like fate that data files surrounded the weapon. Both her and Roxas glanced in surprise when the blue weapon was replaced with a key-shaped blade.
"T-The Keyblade!" Mixa hissed, feeling the power of light drawing her from the awkward extended blade in the boy's hand. Roxas glanced between the blade and the creature a few times, who had greeted him as its "liege". Finally, he grasped the handle with both hands and dashed towards the Dusk. Intrigued, Mixa relaxed in her hiding place as she watched the teen take on a handful of Dusks with little difficulty.
"Hmm." Her eyebrows rose in surprised, before shrugging the expression off. "Not bad at all."
Mixa moved to stand up more naturally, but instantly stiffened when a Dusk approached the now-relaxed Roxas from behind. Slightly leaning forward, she summoned two blades from the realm of light. One, in her left hand, sparked and crackled in lightning before clearing in her hand to reveal a blue, scepter-like blade. In her right hand, from a cloud of light butterflies and sparkles appeared a bronze blade, in the shape of a fancier key. They were named Spellbinder and Fairy Harp, respectively.
With a leap, she snagged the Dusk with Spellbinder from right in the air. Roxas heard her warning, 'Watch it!', as well as the snag of the blade to the Dusk's form. He stumbled backwards, facing the battle in a cautious crouch. His standard shaped key rested stiffly between his clenched hands. Spellbinder threw the Dusk to the ground as the hooded girl landed in front of the creature sprawled on the ground. Fairy Harp came down next, swiftly striking the Dusk through the chest before a quick dual battery from Spellbinder again.
After the second, quick jab strike, the Dusk disappeared into a wave of digital files. Left behind were a pile of photos, all containing Roxas in each Polaroid.
"Sorry, ol' pal." She muttered under her breath, extending her body back up to a normal stand once more. She could feel Roxas' cerulean eyes burning into her back, so casually she glanced over her shoulder at him.
Sure enough, his narrow-eyed glance was on her. The blue orbs rose to stare right into her hood, though she was fairly certain he could not identify her from there. Roxas slowly stood himself, Keyblade dangling from her fingers. The sound and feel surprised him as the blade disappeared from his grasp, but his focus quickly returned to the cloaked female.
"Who...who are you?"
She was silent, eventually turning fully to look at him straight on.
"Watch your back Roxas. Something's not right with this world."
Now, to find a place to stay…
The brunette begrudgingly sifted through Sunset Terrace, searching for something-maybe even an alley way or a comfy cardboard box.
The voice in her head startled her, causing a loud squeak to escape her lips, which startled the inhabitants passing by.
"You think I'd ask you to do a lengthy task without giving you sleeping quarters? You underestimate me."
Laughing awkwardly at an old man who gave her the most ridiculous look, she slipped into one of the empty alley ways and crouched behind one of the dumpsters.
"Geez, Lab Coat-you didn't have to scare me like that." She hissed, slowly sinking into a seated position against the brick wall. "Also, when did I give you permission to stay in my head!? We're not pals-"
"Do you want a place to stay or not?" The voice sighed, interrupting her fit in time before the real rant begun. The brunette clamped her mouth shut, still leaving the disapproving glance on her face. She hummed a confirmation quietly, almost hopelessly.
There was a silence in her mind. When the man did not respond, she glanced around the alleyway for some sign of trouble. Her heart beat increased, and she was about to activate her trained stealth skills when she heard the creak of a doorway on her opposite side.
Mixa snapped her head in the direction of the sound, further into the alleyway. There was a dim light streaming from an ajar doorway just a few feet from her hiding spot. Scoffing to herself, she rose to her feet and dragged her tired body towards the door. She nudged it open gently with her palm, peeking her head inside before locking the door behind her.
As she passed through the doorway, she felt something tingle on every inch of her skin, both uncovered and covered by her clothing. Mixa twitched in acknowledgement, shNaming her arms free of the tingles as she removed her boots at the doormat.
"I see you've felt the force field. This apartment is located off the radar from DiZ and his companions. You'd be wise to keep Roxas out of this room, however. The moment you pass through that door, you are untraceable. I cannot promise that Roxas will be."
"Good to know. I...appreciate your help, Lab Coat."
There was a pause. The voice responded quietly. "You're welcome. Don't dilly-dally."
The brunette scoffed, glancing up the staircase that landed just in front of the main doorway. "Dilly-dally, shilly-shally." She murmured, beginning to ascend the staircase.
The top of the staircase opened up to a moderately sized apartment. Although the brunette was too tired to care or comment on it, Lab Coat really pulled through with these quarters. Immediately, she began searching for the room that would house her exhausted form.
Through the open kitchen and living room, there was a hall leading to one other room. Nodding more to herself than anything, she pushed through the door, closing it behind her. The bedroom was flooded with the orange sunset, tainting the sheet of the bed that faced towards her.
She noted another door that was opened to reveal tile flooring-obviously a bathroom-but managed to remove her armouring and clothing as she slipped underneath the covers. Facing down towards the mattress, her hand wandered aimlessly across the window sill, until she found the drawer to the blinds.
Yanking hard downwards, the room was engulfed in a dimness that did not quite qualify as "darkness" with the setting sun. Shortly after, Mixa nuzzled her head into the pillows, losing consciousness in a heartbeat.