For the first time in either a year, an eternity, or maybe a couple months, depending on who within the gathering you asked, thirteen individuals gathered together in the sterile white, circular room. Though, you could argue that there were really only two people there. That was soon to be remedied, however, as Sora, sitting unconscious in the shortest chair, his heart finally having succumbed to the darkness, was about to become their thirteenth member.
Sure, they could go ahead with the procedure. They didn't need to wait for the boy's friend, who had started on this journey through the sleeping worlds with him, to witness. They didn't need to wait to confront the small King who was sure to be close behind. However, all in attendance knew that patience always prevailed in such situations as these. They weren't after either of those two, afterall. They had all just arrived to collect their final incarnation and pass on their message; an invitation for their thirteen darknesses and the seven warriors of light to gather at the right time and place to finally join together and properly create that sacred X-blade.
As it stood, they were just waiting for those other two guests of honor to catch up and arrive to their little party. However, having each gathered here from their respective times and places across the entire span of of the known universe, there were a number of them who were in dire need of catching up on the specifics of this furthest end to their long game. Not to mention, others had their own stories to tell, to provide those whose memories were less intact with context surrounding the current state of affairs.
While a few of them stood out as recognizable individuals, the expression on the few visible faces ranging from wary to disinterested to amused, many of them looked seemingly identical, the hoods of their black cloaks blocking their face from view. However, there was no denying who was who as each of their attention was drawn to the originator of them all. Who also happened to be the most relaxed out of them. The arrogance of his youth, while radiating off him in waves, proved incapable of lessening the shear force of his wisdom and power.
The black figure turned to each of his companions, one by one. Sizing them up, and, apparently deeming them acceptable; he leaned back in his chair, his right ankle casually resting on his left knee, his hands clasped behind his hooded head. Every single one of them in the room fell silent as he took his time before speaking. Whether he was gathering his thoughts, or gathering the tension for effect, was up for interpretation.
"I'm sure you're all wondering why I gathered you here.
"Nah I'm just kidding. I've always wanted to say that. Now to answer the questions I'm sure you're all wondering." He said between the quiet chuckles escaping him at his own joke. Not at all perturbed by the lack of reaction from the others.
"Did I know what to expect?
"Well, I would be lying if I said I hadn't had some concept of how they would respond. Afterall, I am the one who wrote the book, as it were.
"Did I know my plan would work quite like it did, though?
"Nope. Not exactly, anyway.
"I mean, the distant future is easy to read. The players, even more so. But when it comes to those close to you, even I can fall blind.
"Did I know war would come of it?
"Of course I did. You can't expect children with only a partial lifetime's worth of memories to handle such knowledge as what exists within my writings. At least, not without resulting to such childish whims as distrust and violence.
"I myself am merely a child at this time. Only one life's worth of study to my name. Though I admit I have the advantage of being able to study both the past and the future in equal measure.
"What I didn't know was just how quickly these children, Masters in their own right, could turn on each other. Could write their own doom. As good as their intentions were, their hearts and minds just weren't as strong as mine. Unable to grasp the duality of the light and dark I have begun to find within the world.
"As I recall, the seeds of their own destruction were planted the very night I gave them each two special gifts. A new name, to instill in each of them a sense of individuality, as they had grown too accustomed to existing as a group for my tastes. And a collection of my writings most pertinent to their ultimate cause, though they didn't know this at the time. A tome if you will. I called it The Book of Prophecies." Some of the others visibly stiffened at this recollection. Other's interest were revealed in their unconscious leaning forward. Others still showed no signs of even listening, though none in attendance were fooled into thinking they were anything but enraptured by this story of so many lifetimes ago.
"It had been Ira, who was the first to notice the books differed between each of them. He always was the intellectual. As studious of a wielder as there ever was, he was too gentle for his own good, that boy. Wanted nothing more than to write his poems and study his books. He and Ava had always been a pair. Both too kind to face the world as it truly was. But unlike sweet little Ava, he was as quick to judge as anyone.
"This time proved no different. He and Aced had never gotten along quite as well as the others. Aced had his own ideas of what made a wielder strong. In Aced's eyes, strength of heart was directly tied to strength of the body and strength of mind. A valid theory, if not short sighted. However, maybe I didn't give him enough credit. He was always with Gula, as I recall. And Gula was never the strongest of body or mind. He certainly was a stubborn kid, though. So maybe that's what Aced saw in him. They sure were partners in crime, I will give them that.
"It was Invi who held the group together. The eldest of them all, though you wouldn't know it to look at her. She had always taken on the role of big sister to the others. As opinionated as they come, she was loyal to a fault. Looking back, she might have been the one who lost the most out of the whole ordeal, poor thing. Too steadfast in her beliefs to let go of the ideals she held dear.
"It wasn't long after Ira first noticed the differences in the books that fingers began pointing. I can't recall who threw the first stone, but the very night I made them Foretellers, they had their first fight.
"I just found myself a place to watch as events I hadn't expected to see for months, or even years happened within the span of one night.
"Lines were drawn, claims were made, lies were told, and trust was broken. I knew I was no longer needed to guide them toward their fate, so I was free to bury myself in my studies until the moment was right.
"If I were to continue my research, I knew I needed to survive the impending war. As I had suspected, there was no way any of my Foretellers would prove to be a suitable candidate for my first experiment. Each so easily felled by the very traits that had made them such prestigious wielders in the first place.
"Thankfully I had prepared for this eventuality. It was truly amazing how quickly they were each able to forget their sixth comrade, once I elevated them to the heights they needed to reach before falling. But I had never forgotten him. Nameless to history and virtually blind by comparison to his five siblings, it had taken him a while to forgive me for not allowing him in on their fates. Of course, he came around right when I needed him most. My previous body had finally reached its limit, and fighting to keep the balance within the war had cost it the last of its strength. Through his faith in my experiments, I was able to become the person you see before you, and was able to escape the destruction of my old world to start anew at the aptly named Destiny Islands. There I stayed, the serene quiet of those small islands was heavenly after the noise of Daybreak Town. The perfect place to continue my research in secret." His story ended in a satisfied hum. Clearly pleased with the directions the events of his time were pointing to, and comfortable in the evidence before him that each of his goals were being reached.
"Ahh...Destiny Islands. So peaceful. So quiet. So dull. I remember it well." Croaked the eldest in attendance with a smirk.
Bald and hunched even while sitting, he commanded the attention and respect of the others as the head of the gathering, even though he was neither the original nor the most recent incarnation. His having coordinated the gathering surpassing the history and experience the others provided.
Many of his previous selves snickered in agreement, having never left the Islands themselves since the second incarnation had arrived.
"As some of you will remember I am sure, I was able to leave those forsaken Islands to train and become a keyblade master once again, eventually earning back this very keyblade." He said to his audience, summoning his keyblade for emphasis as he spoke.
"However, as we have all gathered here, this must mean I was only partially successful in my current project." The old man continued, releasing his weapon into thin air as he turned his gaze pointedly to the silent, brown-eyed, white-haired young man, clearly still wearing a lab coat under his cloak. At the attention, his next incarnation shifted uncomfortably in his seat as he looked around at everyone else in attendance.
"How do you mean? What was currently happening when you left your time?" Asked the young man, finally returning his gaze when there was nowhere else to look.
"Hmm…" The old man stalled for a second as he took in both the question and the asker. Taking notice of how his next-in-line self seemed unable to recall his own backstory, even among his kin. Not to mention how familiar his features were, albeit colored differently than the ignorant boy he had been guiding not too long ago.
"Well, from the looks of you, I was just about to transfer my heart into that idiot boy, Terra. And judging by your confusion, it doesn't seem to have been a smooth transition. Last I was aware, my old charge was in the process of re-joining his other half, thus making the X Blade. In theory, anyway." He explained to the young man, stroking his chin with his gloved hand as he did so.
"At first I had been worried that his master friend would interfere but she proved to be no real obstacle. Eraqus has always had a soft spot for those who share his ideals about Light and Darkness. That might explain why he was willing to make her a master before she was ready. Sure she had potential, but the way he kept them all cooped up on that small world, so similar to those Islands, it is no wonder each of them were so naive about the worlds at large. She didn't have the experience to develop opinions of her own until I started putting my plan into action and they left their nursery of a world." The old man chuckled to himself at this thought.
"Once the young master girl was out of the picture, I had been turning my sights back to my two projects. Ventus, weak as he was, had put up a surprisingly good fight. It had been a good choice to leave him with Eraqus and the girl as idols. His light had finally reached the strength to stand up against his own darkness. Though, from the looks of my future selves, that project didn't seem to go as planned either. Maybe I had left him alone too long and allowed him to grow too independant from his other half. If that were the case, though. I can't help but wonder what happened to the two of them…"
As he trailed off in thought, three of his future incarnations each looked to the husk of the small, brown haired, blue eyed boy sitting slumped over, unconscious in the shortest chair. Sora, of course, didn't react to the attention, however each form that held a piece of Terra had the same thought. As much of a stranger as the boy was, there was no denying the familiarity his presence had resounding within the half of themselves they kept as down-trodden and locked away as possible. Even within the one in the lab coat, barely able to so much as remember his own name. And contrary to what they would ever voice to anyone else, even their other selves, the similarities made it difficult to even look at the boy without wanting to destroy him.
Not one to miss the other's reactions to the boy sitting across from him, Master Xehanort stroked his beard in thought.
"This next addition to our group. He came from the Islands as well, about sixteen years ago, didn't he?"
The two of them who knew, nodded in sync, looking first to each other before the old man.
"Well, for all of his flaws, he certainly is an enigma. I will give him that." A smirk dancing across his face again.
"He doesn't seem the type that I would choose to join our number, however. Why such a plain boy who reminds us all so much of Ventus?" He asked the others in attendance. "Were there no better options? With every aspect of this so well planned out, I am surprised that we are resorting to a child such as this to be our final vessel."
At this, the heartless, who seemed to be the only one of the next set of incarnations who had retained the old Master's specific fashion sense, spoke up.
"Well no, there was another boy who was perfectly primed to be one of ours. His own personal darkness and untapped strength would have made for a very nice addition. He, like Terra, had grown up drowning in the light of his friends; and, like you, had always expressed a distaste for the insufferable Islands. In fact, I myself was the one to watch over his development."
His bare chest, orange eyes, and slicked back, long silver hair stood out against the sea of dark hoods, as he, already a heartless, had no need to shroud himself from the darkness.
Looking back to the boy apparently asleep, he was probably the most familiar of the company with the boy, at least in the form he was in now. Sora looked nearly identical to the way he had looked the day he first left the islands, change in clothes aside.
"I hadn't really given him much thought for most of his existence." He continued, his sneer mirroring the smirk of his predecessor.
"Of course I knew he would eventually play an important role in the future; but I had spent those years of biding my time studying the failed attempt, Riku." His drawling, bored voice and graceful hand wave at his words was countered by the intensity of his expression. The heartless's grimace of disgust at his failure was mixed with an expression the others could only recognize as nostalgia, though no one bothered to question what atrocities he was remembering in regards to the other boy.
"It wasn't until it was almost time for those infernal islands to finally come to an end that I even spoke to this boy. His entire life until that point had been wholly unremarkable. Unlike Riku, he had never shown even the faintest inkling of his own curiosity about what lay beyond his little home. Even when the young Princess arrived, it had been Riku who questioned where she came from. This simpleminded child before you had merely been content with expressing pleasure at her arrival until Riku's obsession finally reached him, years later." The heartless's exasperation reached his voice as he gestured his open hand toward Sora.
"I had taken it upon myself to study the development of both Riku and the door to the heart of the world, watching both develop predictably. Of course, with the dawning of the darkness drawing ever nearer, I spent more of my time by the door, to ensure my proper positioning for the moment it was to truly awaken and unleash the unique darkness within the heart of the Islands. I have to admit, I was particularly interested in seeing how that specific world's darkness would manifest.
"Unfortunately, one day right before it was to happen, that boy who hadn't so much as set foot in that cave for years, was in there, exuding his delusionally bright light all over the place. I had been right there, in full view, studying the door. But he didn't see me. He was so caught up in the silly little carvings on the walls, I just stood there and watched as he cried at the wall. Apparently so overcome by emotion that he felt the need to sit down. And there he stayed. Just sitting there carving into the stone walls of the cave as if they were going to stand as markers for all eternity instead of being devoured by the darkness any day."
Even now, as he sat there, just recollecting about this moment a couple years prior, the heartless seemed to be perpetually in shock and disgust at how limited Sora's capacity to acknowledge the darkness really was.
"He was completely oblivious to the growing darkness, even though it was surely affecting him within his dreams at that point. I had even heard him talking about the dreams. About fighting heartless within them and a voice talking to him. Yet he hadn't shown any signs of an awakening at all. In fact, neither of them had shown any keyblade wielding ability yet. So when he noticed my presence in the cave that day, I answered him. Not only did I tell him exactly what I was doing, but I also informed him of how little he actually knew. The fool just stood there staring at me, telling me to stop. He so loves his ignorance that when I did him the honor of educating him, he demanded I leave him alone. As if I was there for him in the first place. But soon the time was right and the Islands fell, and just as I had planned, the first boy, Riku, had followed his destined path to the moment where I was able to utilize his body, primed by an evil fairy who helped him start to discover the true depths of his own darkness.
"It was only once I had succeeded in capturing each of the Princesses of Heart, that Sora stumbled back into the picture. Of course, low and behold, he was holding one of the Princesses' hearts hostage within his own. To this day, I am unsure of how he was able to accomplish such a feat, especially as he is so oblivious, he hadn't even realized what he had done! Somehow, during the fall of the islands, the heart of the final princess had found its way into his. I can only guess that this feat was accomplished by her innate abilities as a Princess of Heart and had nothing to do with Sora's limited abilities. It is the only explanation for how such an idiotic boy, so ignorant to the ways of the heart, wound up with someone else's heart inside him.
"When I had first met him, I could not believe that this was the boy spoken of in the prophecy. Even still, I look at him and I can only see the foolish, ignorant child, blind to the truth and mislead by his so called friends into thinking that he is on some sort of quest for the greater good. Even when his best friend is a being of darkness just as much as light, he still can't understand the fundamental necessity for darkness as the beginning and end of all things." Aware that his incredulity and rage were getting the better of him, the heartless took a calming breath.
"No matter. The child looks to have somehow managed to continue this self-deception, still clinging to his ignorance even while blindly stumbling beyond every goal so far. Through the help of his misguided friends. His friends certainly are powerful, I will give him that."
"Yes, yes. It is clear to us all that this child's ignorance knows no bounds." The old man butted in.
"But what about the first boy. The one you were watching. Riku. How come such a worthy candidate is not among our number?" He pressed on, despite the awkward looks of discomfort the others gave him.
"He escaped beyond our reach." Spoke the heartless, again.
"He proved to be too much of a nuisance." Said the cold, calculated, emotionless counterpart, in the same moment.
They looked at each other, not so much surprised at the other's answer, as disgruntled at the differing opinion they held.
"Escaped? I find that hard to believe when we have such a range of time and space at our disposal." The old man chided, rather like a disapproving teacher.
"He has developed, shall we say, a certain...immunity to the darkness." The heartless explained, his unassured, uncomfortable expression, so foreign on his features. His twin, so ready to provide information just a moment prior was now perfectly content to remain silent and smug, watching his other half squirm.
"For the first year after he himself helped his homes fall to darkness, he was under my command. I had even gone so far as to implant myself within him. It was through this very joining that I was able to regain a physical form after so long. His darkness is the deepest and most vast that I have seen in a long time. However, the evil fairy hadn't done her job as thoroughly as she was supposed to, and there was too much unforeseen attachment to his friends lingering within his heart. He managed to escape my grasp and while I was able to hold onto his body for the time being, his heart escaped to the realm of darkness. At the time I was no longer concerned with him, as we never needed his heart to accomplish my goal. But, from talks with my other, it appears I will be unable to maintain control over this body for much longer, much less defeat Riku's friends." The heartless paused a moment, as if fighting down the wave of guilt and disgust arising within himself for having failed so terribly in his mission.
"However." He continued, before his other could interrupt. "Once the seeds of darkness have been sewn, there is no true escape. My darkness still lingers within that boy's heart. I can feel it as he currently nears. For even if my new body is to be wrestled from my grasp, I myself am not tied to any physical form and will still exist as long as a piece of me lies within him. And I will continue to fight to make him realize his true purpose. Riku's darkness is unparalleled. He is a creature of the dark, no matter how he tries to shut it out. As long as he fears the darkness, I will be there within him. Waiting to bring him back into the fold." The heartless had regained his confidence by now, if his clenched fists and manic smile were anything to go by.
"But that is where you have ultimately failed, once again." Spoke his other.
"Riku no longer fears the darkness, as I have already informed you. Thus we can no longer reach him, as you so eloquently put it, before." The Nobody actually looked bored as he talked. Watching absently as he repeatedly opened and closed his hand held at arms length.
"Though, I will attest that you did indeed leave your mark on the boy. When I came across him, It was at Castle Oblivion, where we were currently running memory and replica experiments on Sora. It must have been shortly after my counterpart had failed." At this point, he seemed to stop talking directly to the heartless and was now addressing the room as a whole. Though its face did form into a slight snarl at being called a failure.
"According to reports I received later, he had arrived shortly after Sora had, having gotten help from both a reborn Ansem and that small, Keyblade wielding King. My subordinates had decided of their own accord to start performing our experiments on him as well. For most of his stay at Castle Oblivion, the experiments went smoothly. His fear of the dark, while keeping him from using it to it's fullest potential, put enough of a handicap on him that we were able to do what we pleased in extracting data from him. It wasn't until the end that he finally seemed to reawaken the seed my counterpart had left within him. But, instead of it taking over him as before, allowing my counterpart to fully return, my imbecilic subordinates allowed petty attempts at usurping power get the better of them, and he found a way to stay in control of the darkness within him."
"It was then that the boy officially chose to team up with the fool I once called mentor, Ansem, though I did not realize it at the time. Ansem must have given him one of the coats all who walk in darkness wear, as he was able to disappear during the commotion that was the disastrous end of the Castle Oblivion experiments.
"I am unsure what exactly he was doing for most of the following year. Gathering intel for Ansem, no doubt. Through the Princess of Heart, Sora's heart had returned from being a heartless to its original form. And they had been able to put the heart into a controlled slumber. However, we had Roxas, his Nobody. Who, being the stronger half of a keyblade wielder was also able to wield the keyblade himself.
"Later on, we also had one of the few successes of our replica program. A sentient puppet entity we called Xion, who, through repeated interaction with Roxas was able to absorb his ability to wield a keyblade we had fashioned from the information we had gathered from Sora. It proved to be our secret weapon as long as it lasted, due to having not only absorbed the ability to wield a keyblade, but also the memories Sora had of the Princess of Heart. This allowed us to postpone Sora's awakening, until Riku found The World that Never Was, and began interfering with our plans.
"Unable to recognize him at first due to the cloak he still wore, I had chosen to use this imposter's presence as a test for the puppet. I sent Xion out to capture and end the imposter, only to have Riku recognize it as a replica of that Princess, made from Sora. He was able to convince the puppet to think for itself and it became a rogue unit, eventually destroying itself in an effort to turn against us. But as fools are wont to do, the others followed suit. The puppet, having grown attached to Roxas, had spread the infection to him and he too eventually turned rogue, falling right into Riku's clutches. It wasn't until then, when he finally lowered his hood and revealed his dark powers in attempt to subdue Roxas that we became aware of his identity."
The Nobody closed his eyes, gave a weary sigh, and shook his head slightly. Clearly dismayed at this turn of events and the illogical, counterproductive actions of his fallen and wayward former associates. He seemed to be debating as to whether he should continue on with his recollection of the events leading to his own present. He himself had been pulled from his timeline shortly after having watched as his pet project. His very own Kingdom Hearts, had been destroyed by that ever sentimental Ansem. He had even born witness to Riku's transformation from a copy of his heartless counterpart, back to the body of the young man. He couldn't shake the theory that this moment, so fresh in his memory, was one of the factors leading to Riku's inevitable uselessness, despite all the work he and his predecessors had put into the boy.
However, if you speak of the devil, he will appear. And as everyone in the gathering became aware of the sound of approaching chaos as the boy, currently turned Dreameater approached, story time came to a halt.
It was time to set the stage for the next act in their story. With a look to each of the others, they had no need to discuss their plan of action. The last one of them had just managed to warp away as the silver haired Dreameater ran into the room, eyes immediately falling upon the room's single occupant. The sleeping form of Sora.