A/N: More Kingdom Hearts magic! This time, Marrik explains his plans to get Namine and Roxas their own bodies, but also why he's reluctant to proceed with the plan at this time. I should also note that I lied earlier when I said this would be the last chapter on Twilight Town. There's going to be one more after this, then the group will leave for their next destination.
Disclaimer: Don't own it!
Chapter 10 – Forming Plans
Secretly, Roxas was thankful that Mickey was cooking the group's lunch today. Even though he'd never met anyone except Namine and Riku before the previous night, he had shared Sora's memories of the others, and was well aware of how horrible Donald's cooking was.
"You know, it's actually nice to be able to move around for a while." Namine admitted as she stood next to Roxas, watching the others.
"Yeah, it is. It's a bit scary knowing that you have no control over your fate, your life." Roxas seemed slightly bitter about this fact, which hadn't gone unnoticed by the others, who turned their attention to the Nobodies.
"Aww, cheer up, you two. I'm sure Yen Sid'll find a way to get you your own bodies!"
"Thanks, Donald. I hope so." Roxas smiled to the duck. Namine, for her part, was thinking about something else. She was aware what she'd done last time she was able to think and act on her own. As such she was questioning whether she even deserved to have a second chance. Roxas seemed to see the turmoil in the girl's mind and gave her a hug. "Hey, if it's about what happened before, don't worry about it. You did what you had to to survive."
"Thank you, Roxas." Namine smiled and leaned against the other Nobody a bit, sighing. Her actions got a few snickers from the assembled group, which made both Nobodies' faces become several shades of pink as they pulled apart. "You need some help, Your Majesty?"
"Oh, no, Namine, I've got it. It's pretty simple to make soup and grilled cheese sandwiches." The King smiled at the girl, chuckling light-heartedly.
"Yeah, tell that to the duck." Roxas muttered.
"Hey! I don't see you offering to do any cooking!" Donald had apparently heard the offhand comment.
"I know I can't. I may have his memories, but I'm not Sora. I don't have his skills." This seemed to get Donald to calm down slightly. "Besides, I'm not sure I should make something if I don't know I'll be around to enjoy it." The Nobody's comment seemed to sober up the room quickly, all laughter and joking seemed to quit suddenly.
"Wow, I know I'm not wanted here, but really, you don't need to act like Death just entered the room." Marrik smirked as he entered the kitchen, oblivious to the conversation that had just occurred.
"Gawrsh, Marrik, it's not you." Goofy looked at the wielder, smiling a little once more. "We were just talking about Roxas and Namine's situation."
"Ah." Marrik nodded.
"It truly is an odd one, to say the least." Yen Sid had come down the steps behind Marrik, and once he did, the stairs disappeared, making the room larger than it had been before.
"Do you think you can help?" Mickey was still cooking as he looked back at his one time master.
"I'm not sure. Marrik has an idea, but he won't say what it is."
"That's because in its current form, it won't work." Marrik looked at the master for a second. "At least, that's what all the math and simulations say."
"Then why even consider it?"
"Because the basis is solid. It's just the details that are wrong." Marrik shrugged slightly. "We can discuss it later, once lunch is done. Potato?"
Mickey smiled, laughing lightly. "It never ceases to amaze me how good you are at picking out smells, Marrik. If I didn't know better, I'd swear you were part bloodhound." It was true, during the war, Marrik had become quite well known for being able to tell what was being made for the group's next meal simply by the aromas coming from the kitchen. He'd actually managed to win quite a bit of munny doing this.
"Man, you're good at making us wait and anticipate, aren't you?" Riku was teasing a bit, though his comment was serious.
"I believe in things having a proper time and place. I know I can't finish my explanation before lunch is ready, and I'd rather not be interrupted." Marrik smirked slightly. "Besides, Mickey's cooking is quite good, you'll be happy I didn't make you wait for it."
"Gosh, thanks, Marrik." Mickey blushed a bit at the compliment. "But, yeah, the soup will be ready in a minute, and the sandwiches are almost done as well."
Less than a minute later, the mouse king was dishing up the soup and putting the sandwiches on plates for the gang. It was then that they realized that the table in the kitchen wasn't big enough for everyone. Thankfully, Yen Sid pulled out another, smaller table. He requested that Marrik join him at that table, to which the wielder reluctantly agreed.
Lunch was ate in joy and happiness. Everyone was talking about various things, including Marrik and Yen Sid. Eventually, however, the group at the large table began discussing things that really had no bearing on the two sorcerers at the smaller table, which left them to be silent and listen to the others, and their own thoughts.
Yen Sid was surprised after a few minutes of silence when he heard something asked of him. "It's starting again, isn't it?" Marrik's question was quiet. He didn't want to interrupt the others.
"The war?" Yen Sid looked over at the younger man, who nodded. This gained a slight chuckle from the old man. "My boy, it never really ended. It only went underground. Granted, there were about ten years of peace, but the Forces of Darkness were only regrouping to begin their assault all over again."
Marrik considered this for a few minutes. "He's going to be a target, you know."
Yen Sid didn't need to ask to know what Marrik was talking about. "He always was."
"Yes, but he can still regain his memories, his abilities."
"Only if the two halves are rejoined. I question whether that would be even possible at this point."
"That is true, they may not want to rejoin, either. Either way..."
"Then their inevitable meeting will either end in great tragedy for us or great triumph." Yen Sid sighed at this realization. It was true that he had considered the possibility, but having someone who looks at things from a completely different perspective come to the same conclusion merely served to confirm it. "They are not ready to face that threat yet."
Marrik nodded. "No, they aren't. Neither am I, for that matter. With any luck, by the time it becomes necessary to face him, we will have the strength to be able to persevere." Yen Sid nodded his agreement and the two fell back into silence, watching the others.
It wasn't long before the group started turning their attention to Marrik once more. "So, you said you'd try to help us?" Roxas seemed a little eager to have his own body.
"Yes, I intend to try, at least." Marrik looked around. "Yen Sid, do you have a room where I can use this and let everyone see it?" He held up the data stick as he spoke.
"Ah, yes, I have a room downstairs. Follow me." Yen Sid led the group through several hidden rooms and staircases into another room somewhere within his tower. This room was much more technological in appearance, with a large TV screen and a computer attached to it. The group couldn't help but look at the setup in awe.
"Oh, wow, this might be better than what Cid has!" Mickey looked at it surprised.
"I think it might be newer than the system Cid was using." Sora commented, also amazed.
"Thank you. I do try to keep up with the times as much as possible." Yen Sid smiled, apparently appreciative of the compliments. He then noticed Marrik looking the system over. "The screen is a touch screen, so it's easier to interface with."
"Ah, thanks." Marrik nodded and waited for everyone to get settled in the room. It was surprisingly large, and somehow Yen Sid had managed to get seats for all of the visitors he had. "All the cards are on the table." Marrik muttered to himself before sighing and turning to the others. "I want to get a few things clear before I start. First off..." Marrik pointed to Namine and Roxas as he began speaking. "You two are able to see and know everything your somebodies do and think when you're within their minds, correct?"
"Yes, we can." Namine nodded her confirmation to Roxas's statement.
"Good. I assume the opposite is true, as well?"
"Yes, they know what we do and vice versa." Namine answered this time.
"Good, then I'll only have to explain this once." Marrik sighed once again and pulled out the memory stick. "Before I start, though, I want to make one thing clear. Before we proceed with this plan, everyone in this room needs to agree to it. Especially the four of you, since you will be the ones undergoing the procedure." As he spoke the last bit, he looked at Namine and Roxas. Once again, everyone nodded their confirmation, to which Marrik nodded in return.
"One of the issues that Yen Sid has with Alden's Mage's Council is that the Council is unafraid to authorize and conduct experiments relating to magic. Sometimes, these experiments end very badly, sometimes they end well. It is the risk which Yen Sid has always had a problem with. He's always held the conviction that any pursuit of knowledge that results in the loss of life is knowledge that not worth obtaining. The Council has always held that without experiments, there can be no growth, and sometimes with growth there is danger. What I'm about to show you is an example of both."
"Around ten years ago, the Mage's Council became aware of a rather unusual case coming through the court system." As Marrik spoke, he inserted the stick into the computer, bringing the data on it onto the touch screen behind him. "A man had been arrested and was being tried for the murder of at least a dozen people before and during the Keyblade War. The man had admitted to having killed these people, and normally that would be the end of it. However, it became clear that the man was suffering from multiple personality disorder. Because of this, it was decided to go through with the trial anyway, as the prosecutor didn't feel it was in his best interest to send what was, in the eyes of the general public at least, a partially innocent man."
Marrik pulled up a few sheets of paper, court documents. "In the end, the man was found guilty and sentenced to life in prison for the crimes. The public became outraged at this. The council had suspected this might happen, and because of that, during the trial they'd begun research into the separation of two spirits inhabiting one body. Around six weeks after the conviction, they announced that they had formed a tentative plan to try to separate the two. That way, the guilty part of his personality would be punished for his crimes, but the innocent half would be allowed to go free. All of this was based on the idea that the subject would be willing to risk his life to gain that freedom, which of course he accepted quite quickly."
Marrik manipulated the screen again, showing a few different documents now, handwritten notes, done by two different people. "It had been determined that a specific set of spells cast in a specific order at specific times would separate the two into two bodies. However, the energy required to do so was more than any one person could safely control. As such, two apprentices of the Head Counselor volunteered to administer the experiment." He paused for a second bringing up a different set of notes, which described the experiment. "Everything went according to plan, up until it came time to sever the connection that bound the two spirits together."
"The two mages tried to use a specific spell to cut the bonds. Unfortunately, they poured too much energy into the spell. Instead of just severing the bonds, instead it shredded both souls." Marrik sighed slightly. "The man was killed in the process, but according to the notes, he didn't die without enduring a lot of pain. Both men wrote in their notes that the screams the man let out as the spell was killing him were unlike anything they'd ever heard before." He swallowed as he paused. "Both mages committed suicide soon after, claiming that they were haunted by the experience."
Marrik noticed a few gasps as he'd spoken the last bit. He knew that this would be hard for some of the people in the room to hear. He'd also noticed Yen Sid's scowl had deepened as Marrik was speaking. "This was the first of three experiments in this area. The second one was by far the most tragic. Two lower level mages tried to use the information that they'd managed to steal from the Guild's library on the original experiment to recreate it for a friend of theirs who was suffering from MPD. Unfortunately, they had neither the training nor the experience to control the spells, and created an energy vacuum, which ultimately exploded, destroying three blocks of the city. Three hundred fifty people lost their lives in the explosion." As he'd spoke, he brought up pictures taken from various sources of the explosion. These images caused Namine to gasp and close her eyes, obviously disturbed by them. Marrik knew this would happen, but he needed to tell them the risks.
"Approximately a year after the explosion, a friend of the Head Councilor came to him, asking him to help with his son, who had MPD. The man was aware of both experiments, and also knew that the second one had been done without the Council's authorization or their monitoring. He managed to convince the Head that if trained mages were to conduct the experiment once more, the procedure may be successful. He also mentioned that his son was being driven insane by the other personality within him, to the point where he'd already tried to end his own life."
"Considering all of this, the Council reluctantly agreed to try once more. In an attempt to minimize the risks, it was decided to do the experiment in a secluded house in the mountains far north of the City. The home was set up with video cameras to record the experiment as well as microphones to record audio and speakers to help with communication between the home and the lab in the Tower, where the rest of the Council and other top mages, including myself, would be controlling and advising the two at the home. The only people that were going to physically be in the house were the subject and the two mages performing the experiment."
"The evening before the experiment, there was a massive blizzard on the mountain, which cut off access to the home. It was determined by those involved to continue with the experiment anyway, with the knowledge that if anything happened those in the house were on their own. The experiment began, and went quite well. As the two mages worked, however, one of them slightly mispronounced one of the words in an enchantment he was casting. Both of the mages in the house caught the slight mistake, but continued on with the process. Nobody really thought anything of the error at the time."
"About an hour into the procedure, it became apparent that the two mages were wearing out much faster than they should have been. At that point they tried to call the spirits out of the body, in order to cut the chains binding them. Before they could set to separating the two, however, both mages collapsed, and the subject screamed in pain, before he passed out as well. It was another two hours before the subject began to move once more and upon the suggestion of those at the base, he checked the mages, finding both to have passed."
"A few hours after that, the subject grabbed his head and screamed in pain. He told the council that something had gone horribly wrong, and now he was hearing THREE voices inside his head. It was determined by the Council, upon further research, that the mage's mistake with the pronunciation had far ranging consequences. The mispronunciation had caused the two mages to gain energy for the spells from their own life force, rather than the magic energies of the world around them. Further, when they were calling out the spirits, they inadvertently joined their own to the subject's, when their life force ran out, they were combined into the subject's body instead of being released to pass on." He stopped here, looking at the data on the screen. It showed notes written by several members of the Council and others present for the third experiment.
"So what happened to the subject?" Namine was very concerned about this. Marrik nodded to her, sighing.
"He committed suicide about three days later. It was another two before we were able to come up and retrieve the bodies."
"So how did you get the notes on all of this?" Yen Sid was a bit curious about everything as well.
"After the experiment failed, I was tasked with determining why and trying to find a way to make the experiment safer. As such, I was given access to all the notes that the Council had on the first two experiments. Soon after the bodies were recovered, the Council voted unanimously to terminate any research into spirit separation, and ordered me to halt my investigation. They never asked me to return the data I had, and as such, I've kept it ever since, uploading it onto this drive."
"Did you manage to determine anything before your investigation was stopped?" Roxas was a bit nervous about what he'd seen, knowing that Marrik was intending to put him and Namine through roughly the same procedure.
"I determined that, with the spell list the Council had created, the odds of the experiment failing on some level were at around 96%." This gained another round of gasps from his audience.
"Gawrsh, those odds don't make putting Sora, Kairi, Namine, and Roxas through the attempt." Goofy shook his head. Donald nodded in agreement, as did Mickey.
"I am aware of this. I don't intend to put them through anything that has that high of a failure rate." Everyone's attention returned to Marrik once more. "Even after I was told to shut down the investigation, my own curiosity led me to pursue ways to make the process safer. Unfortunately, I have yet to come up with one, which is another reason I need Yen Sid's help." The wielder brought up a paper, which Yen Sid and Mickey both immediately recognized as a list of spells. "This is the basis of the experiments, the spells used in them."
Looking at the list, Yen Sid couldn't help but swallow hard. "The precision required to make all of these spells work to the intended conclusion, it'd be almost impossible to do correctly."
"I know. Can you help find some other spells that can have the same effect but less risk?"
"I can try, but it'll take time."
"Wait just a minute. You're not going to help him with the research?" Donald seemed annoyed by this.
"As good as I am with magic, I believe my services are better spent out there, helping you seal the worlds and make them safe. Besides, I have a score to settle with the Heartless, and I can't do it sitting in a library all day."
"He's right, Donald. I can handle the research into these experiments. His destiny is out there, not in here." Yen Sid's comments surprised Marrik more than anyone, though it did get everyone's attention. "Don't worry, I think I can find a few ways to improve the odds. Though, I'd like to have access to all of the notes on the three experiments anyway."
"Keep the stick. I have another copy on board the ship." He looked at the others. "I can make more copies for the rest of you, if you want. I'd recommend that you at least look over the notes before deciding whether to go through with this plan."
"As it stands, I'd have to say no to the plan, Marrik. However, if Yen Sid can get the odds of success to a more reasonable level, I will have no problem changing my mind." The King's words were soft and kind, not admonishing as Marrik would have almost expected. He knew this was a reckless idea, even under the best circumstances. As he looked around, he noticed that everyone was agreeing with the King. He nodded as well.
"In its current state, I wouldn't ask you to allow me to attempt the experiment. If Yen Sid can improve the odds, we will discuss this again. If he can't then I'm sorry, but you four will have to find another way." Marrik shrugged to the two Nobodies in apology. "I just wanted to let everyone know what I was looking at doing, and the risks involved in it."
"We can adapt if we have to, Marrik." Roxas smiled at the older wielder. "On behalf of Sora, I want to say thanks for the idea, and the attempt." Namine nodded in agreement. Marrik smiled.
"You're both welcome, as are Sora and Kairi."
"Well, I suppose I should get started on the research. Dinner will be ready in about four hours. In the meantime, why don't you all relax or get some training in?" Yen Sid smiled to the group. "By the way, where do you intend to go next?"
"Well, gosh, Master. We don't really know yet. We haven't set a plan or a path out in front of us." Mickey seemed almost shy at the question. It was true, though, in their haste, nobody had thought to wonder where their next stop would be once they were done in the Tower. Usually, in the past, they'd find a hint on where to go, but so far they had yet to see one at this location. "That said, we aren't leaving until tomorrow morning, so maybe we'll find a path in the meantime."
"Very well." Yen Sid nodded and left the room. The rest of the group scattered throughout the tower, doing various tasks. Riku and Roxas practiced their sword fighting on the front lawn of the tower, with Namine drawing their antics in her notepad. Mickey, Donald, and Goofy all went their own separate ways as well. Mickey had gone to Yen Sid's study to try to contact Disney Castle and check in with Queen Minnie. Donald was in a training room practicing his aim on some dummies. Goofy had found a TV and was watching various shows and cartoons. Marrik seemed to disappear for most of the day, though all of the others managed to catch sight of him on occasion as he wandered around.
A/N: This was another long chapter, and a long-winded one on my part. I apologize for that, but I believe it's necessary to get all of that told. After all, it manages to show why Marrik wants to do what he's doing, as well as why he's reluctant to do it. The experiments will also tie in to another plot point I'll get to in a future chapter. So, as I mentioned at the start, the next chapter will be the last one with them in Twilight Town, and I do have a few things to finish up, including more on the mystery at the mansion.
As always, please leave a review or comment! I know this chapter isn't that good, but even so, they are appreciated!