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Chapter 36 - Revival
"You failed to eliminate DiZ" said Saïx from his throne, a hint of disappointment in his voice.
"We were unable to get past Riku" I stated calmly.
Saïx looked at me. He was looking for someone to assign blame.
"She speaks truthfully" said Marluxia. "Riku wields more dark power than any of us were aware. We were taken off guard".
Axel and Lexaeus nodded their heads in agreement.
"He incapacitated everyone but myself with a single wave of darkness" I said. "Somehow my Keyblade broke through it, which is why I was the only one still standing".
"That, I would assume is due to the nature of your weapon" Zexion piped in, his finger under his chin in a thinking posture. "It is half of the darkness, so it makes sense that it would be able to fend off such an attack".
"Regardless, it would seem DiZ is out of reach so long as Riku is with him" said Saïx. He paused for a moment, mulling over the information. "We will have to re-evaluate our plans".
Coming to the common area, I looked around from the entrance to see who was there. A few members were standing around, likely waiting to be assigned missions. There was no sign of Axel or Roxas. I walked up to Saïx.
"What's the mission today?" I said calmly.
"Heart collection in Agrabah with Larxene" he stated.
"Got it" I said.
I turned around to find Larxene, and spotted her standing a short distance away, looking in my direction mischievously. She didn't make a move, so I walked up to her.
"So, ready for the mission?" I asked flatly.
"Hmm… I suppose" she replied.
I looked at her.
"Ya know, you're kind of boring without emotions…" she then said. "No fun to play with".
I tilted my head slightly.
"Ugh, fine" she said, disappointed. "Let's go".
She turned and opened a portal, into which we both walked. We arrived in the middle of an alleyway in the town in Agrabah. There were buildings lining the street, with various colours of fabric blowing in the wind. Larxene turned and looked at me, her face looking bored.
"Looks like I'm on training wheels today…" she muttered. "You're just like Roxas when he first arrived". She scoffed.
"I can still fight" I said. "I haven't forgotten everything".
She looked at me for a moment, before her expression changed to a grin.
"That's not all there is to it, kid" she said. "I'm sure you know how far emotions can go when properly utilized. Real or not". She pointed her finger up in front of her as if teaching a lesson as she spoke. "Hmm…" she laughed slightly, smirking mischievously. "This should be fun". The tone of her voice had changed back to its usual vigor.
She turned and began walking down the street. I didn't think anything of her words, and caught up to walk together. Shortly after coming to a crossroads in the alley, a few groups of Shadows appeared. I went into action, summoning my Keyblade.
Slashing at the first couple in a group, they went down without much effort. I then turned my attention to the next three. Just as I was about to reach them, I felt an electric shock hit the back of my left shoulder. I turned around to look at Larxene, surprise and annoyance evident on my face. She was the only one it could've come from.
"Oops, it just slipped out…" she said innocently.
I turned back to the Heartless, not thinking much of it as I took out a few more. I ran at the next group, beginning to work on their number. As I was about to attack a few more, I felt another shock to my back, stronger this time, and fell forward slightly. I looked back at her with more annoyance than before.
"Are you trying to get a rise out of me?" I said.
"Is it working?" she said tauntingly. "I can see that little defiant personality of yours ever so slowly coming back…".
"Huh?" I said, standing up straight, and turning to face her.
I hadn't realized it, but even without emotions, my actions were reminiscent of how I had been before I lost my heart. I looked at her with curiosity.
"What are you trying to do?" I asked seriously.
"Oh, just having a little fun" she said, grinning.
Before I was able to respond, the Shadows I had left caught me off guard, jumping from behind. I fell to the ground as four of them landed on top of me.
"Ngh!" I said as I hit the hard, sandy surface.
Ignoring what Larxene had said, I focused my attention back on the battle. Turning around and pushing the Heartless off of me, I slashed my Keyblade at them from a crouch, and got up to a standing position. I ran at the group directly in front.
"Haaah!" I yelled, a hint of anger evident in my voice now.
I slashed the few that had been there, and then went after the final group in the area, running with intent. A few attacks later, they had dispersed, releasing hearts. I was breathing heavily; the heat of the battle having overtaken me. I heard clapping coming from behind, and turned to look at Larxene.
"Well done!" she said proudly. "You see what I mean about putting a little more 'umph into it? Emotions make a big difference".
"But we don't have emotions" I said flatly.
"We may not have 'em in the traditional sense, but that sure looked like some emotion to me!" she said.
She was right. Even though I hadn't felt anything, I had been annoyed with her, and even showed a bit of anger during the battle. How was that possible?
"And now she's wondering how that can be…" said Larxene teasingly. Then her voice went harsh. "I'm not gonna spell it out for ya, so don't even go there".
We walked on, taking out groups of Barrel and Pot Spiders, and Large Bodies as we went. Larxene sent her lightning at enemies in between myself attacking with the Keyblade. Many of her attacks just narrowly missed me, much to my annoyance, and her amusement. After a while, it seemed she had lost interest in the battles, and stayed watching on the sidelines while I fought.
We came to the last area of town; a large clearing in front of the arched gate to the desert. There were some stalls around the edges, but it was mostly a barren area. A group of Loudmouths and Tornado Steps appeared in front of us. The Loudmouths began trumpeting their horns.
Before they could get off more than a few seconds of sound, I had summoned my Keyblade, ran at them, and silenced their ear-splitting tones.
"Gah! Those things are really annoying!" I said, exasperated, and then held my mouth surprised at what had just come out of it.
Pushing the thought aside for a moment, I ran at the Tornado Steps, Larxene watching from a short distance away. I took out all but one, which began bouncing its' way toward an alley.
"Oh no you don't!" I said, as I ran after it.
I caught it in a small clearing a short way into the alley. Sending a blast of darkness at it, it dispersed. Standing up straight, and dismissing my Keyblade, I looked around at where I was. It was a small, square-shaped clearing formed by the backs of tall buildings on all sides. There was only a slit of an opening in the corner where myself and the Heartless had come through. Larxene hadn't caught up with us.
Just as I had turned to leave, I caught the sight of a figure out of the corner of my eye walking out from the shadows. I paused and turned my head slightly to look at them. They were tall and slim, with a feathered hat on, and held a staff in their hand. It was Jafar.
"Why, hello" he said. "I don't believe we've been properly introduced". He paused, smirking confidently. "I am Jafar". He gave a slight bow.
I turned to continue walking, but he raised his staff, and put up an invisible shield in front of the exit. I turned to face him, an annoyed look on my face.
"What do you want?" I asked seriously.
"Such manners" he said. "I cannot address a lady without first knowing her name…".
"It's Genxam" I said flatly.
I felt no fear at his presence. Nothing like I had felt during encounters with other Disney villains. I was more annoyed that he had interrupted my mission. Still, I was slightly curious at what he wanted. Even with the exit blocked, I could always create a Corridor and leave anytime I wanted.
"You wield the darkness well, my dear…" he said mesmerizingly.
My back was to the opening in the buildings where I came in, so I didn't see Larxene appear around the corner a slight distance back, watching the encounter. She kept out of sight.
"What of it?" I said, unimpressed.
"Such a power could be of much use to me…" mused Jafar.
"Yeah, well, it's not yours" I said, taking up a defensive posture.
"Such strong will…" he responded. "But no matter, I will take it by force!".
He raised his serpent staff, the eyes beginning to glow. I didn't take any chances; thrusting my hand out, I sent a blast of darkness at it, obliterating the head into a million pieces. Jafar gasped in outrage, looking at his staff, and then at me.
"Such power! Give it to me!" he said aggressively.
"Not a chance" I said. "I work for the Organization, no one else. We WILL complete our goal".
With that, I sent another darkness blast his way, but this time he jumped up to the roof of one of the surrounding buildings, avoiding it. He looked down at me angrily for a moment before his expression changed to a sneer. He disappeared from view shortly thereafter, the invisible barrier on the exit disappearing. I walked out of the alley.
Coming back into the clearing, I saw Larxene standing off to one side waiting. She looked bored.
"Are you done?" she asked. "I was getting bored waiting for you".
I sighed. Could she never be a little nice?
"Anyway, that should be all of them" she said. "Let's head back to the castle".
She opened a Corridor, and we both went through. By the time I came through in the common area, she had already disappeared from sight. Warm and fuzzy… I thought. As always.
Once the Corridor behind me had disappeared, I turned and created my own to Twilight Town. Walking through the swirling mass, I left the common area behind. As I came out on the ledge of the clock tower, I popped my head around the corner, and saw that both Axel and Roxas already sitting there. They smiled at me as I took my place on the ledge, Roxas handing me a stick of ice cream. I let out a deep sigh after munching down my first bite, deep in thought.
"Long day?" asked Roxas.
"You could say that" I replied.
"Wanna talk about it?" asked Axel.
I looked at the both of them. They both looked at me with concern. I looked down at my ice cream, and then back at them.
"Today on the mission," I began. "I showed anger… and annoyance, but I didn't feel anything". I paused. "How's that possible?".
"It's because your mind remembers" said Axel.
I looked at him.
"We all started out the way you did when you lost your heart" he continued. "Completely emotionless. It takes a bit of getting used to at first, but slowly your personality comes back". He paused, and then grinned, looking at Roxas. "Unless you're Roxas of course. He was a complete zombie of a Nobody when he was born!".
"Hey!" said Roxas, pushing Axel on the shoulder playfully. "How many times are you gonna bring that up?!". He blushed slightly.
"Forever" said Axel mischievously, pushing him back.
I snorted, and then broke out into full-on, uncontrollable laughter. I didn't know where it had come from. It had just happened. The two of them stopped their fist-fight and looked over at me, smiling. I stopped once I noticed them grinning, and covered my mouth in surprise.
"How…?" I said, completely bewildered by what had just happened.
"Don't think too hard about it" said Roxas smiling encouragingly. "Just be you".
"We have nothing to worry about with Genxam" reported Saïx from his throne. "Larxene reports that she is fully invested in the Organization's goal".
"Little poppet's doing exactly what we want" began Xigbar. "Doesn't realize her true purpose here. Everything's going perfectly to plan". He smirked evilly.
"Excellent" said Xemnas.
Uh oh. What's the Organization planning NOW?!
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