Disclaimer: I must lament that I do not own the Xenosaga trilogy; Namco-Bandai does.
Warning: Major spoilers for Episodes I – III, you have been warned.
Dedication: I never really get myself motivated enough to start writing a fan fiction, even if I have the idea for one itching to be let out, but after reading 100-series's excellent "Find Us Peace" I find myself with the drive to write out this tale, so I dedicate this to you—you have all my admiration in the world, my talented writer (or, at least, what little that might amount to when one gets down the matter of it J
(Author's Note: Hebrew letters denote a scene change)
Prologue: Converging Fates
א ב ג ד ה ו ז ח ט י ך כ ל
The perpetual chords of Wagner filled the air of the pyramid-like office, as its sole occupant gazed through the slanted glass of the rooms walls and out into the infinite sea of stars that stretched out before him.
Wilhelm, chief executive officer of the interplanetary conglomerate Vector Industries, surveyed the all-encompassing cloth of the cosmos with crimson eyes, his hands folded leisurely behind the back of his black suit. "The curtain shall soon fall upon the final act of humanity," Wilhelm observed, his soft voice lost among the notes of ancient music that saturated the air. "The stage has been set and the roles cast—all that remains is for the actors to play out their parts in the upcoming finale," The current song died out, its final notes lingering in the air, and the first notes of the next piece of Wagner took their place. The CEO allowed the smallest of smiles to grace his normally passive face. "Ah, Götterdämmerung—the Twilight of the Gods," Wilhelm recalled, "how fitting," the platinum-haired man mused. "However," he spoke, turning towards the Compass of Order and Chaos, that rested upon the ancient pedestal that Masuda had excavated from Lake Turkana of Lost Jerusalem more than four thousand years prior, "the curtain of this drama shall not fall upon destruction," Wilhelm stated, his every word being that of absolute certainty as he gazed about the ever-moving artifact.
Turning around, the pale-skinned man walked upon the lift that served as the only conventional means of entry or exit from his office. "Though I wonder what role shall you play before all is done, Yeshua?" Wilhelm asked aloud to the office, but the only reply he would receive was the strains of Wagner, which offered to him no answer.
א ב ג ד ה ו ז ח ט י ך כ ל
In the lower levels of the Dämmerung, chaos leaned against the railing of the third docking platform with his arms crossed leisurely at his chest as he watched the Uzuki siblings bid each other farewell. Though whatever happened to them fourteen years ago had undoubtedly created a rift between the two of them, the silver-haired youth thought, their relationship is not as damaged as they believe. His gaze then drifted to the right and he noticed that KOS-MOS was, and probably had been for a while, staring at him with ruby eyes; chaos sent the blue-haired android a smile, which widened a little more when all when the android—not unexpectedly—merely blinked at and seemed to tilt her head ever so slight to one side as she, no doubt analyzing his actions.
Just then the doors at the other end of the platform slid open silently and a single figure in a black suit stepped forth through the threshold and gazed directly at the silver-haired teen. Chaos's eyes widened slightly, though he met the gaze of the newcomer. Blue eyes met the red ones of the head of Vector, a multitude of words and implications being communicated between the two without words. Wilhelm smiled slightly.
"—won't you, chaos?"
Ripped from the silent confrontation, the aforementioned said person reluctantly shifted his gaze from the CEO to Shion, who was looking at him expectedly. "I'm sorry, Shion, I wasn't quite listening. What was it you said?"
Shion, though, merely seemed amused by this, and smiled and shook her head slightly. "I asked if you could an eye on Jin for me," the chief of Vector First Division repeated. "I don't want to think of the trouble he'd get himself into if he was left on his own."
The raven-haired swordsman gave his sister a look and crossed his arms. "Hey now," he protested.
Chaos smiled at the interaction between the two, and nodded to his friend. "Of course," he answered with a nod of his head; then he shifted his eyes back to the entrance of the docking platform, only to find that Wilhelm was had vanished, as if the head of Vector Industries had never been there to begin with. Before he could dwell on the matter any longer, Captain Mathew's gruff voice sounded over the loudspeaker of the Elsa:
"You two better hurry it up! We have to get going!" the gruff captain of the former luxury cruiser barked, sounding a bit slightly tried in patience in his tone.
"It would appear that the captain is getting slightly impatient," the once-bookseller said, his tone seeming slightly amused as he addressed chaos. "We should most likely hurry and get on deck."
Chaos nodded in agreement to Jin, though he stepped forward KOS-MOS, folding his hands pleasantly behind his back. "I guess will see you again as well, huh, KOS-MOS?"
The android blinked at the silver-haired teen before replying in her feminine monotone voice. "Based upon our current rate of encounters, I calculate that there is a 98.375 percent likihood that our paths will cross again in the future," KOS-MOS recited systematically, nodding at him.
Chaos smiled at the reply. "I'm glad to hear that; I look forward to it," he said. Turning to Shion he nodded his head in acknowledgement. "Fairwell, then," he bade pleasantly before turning around and returning to the waiting Jin. As the two were making their way to the gangplank, Shion called out to her brother, and though the swordsman paused, chaos continued into the Elsa to allow the two their final words with each other.
Taking his seat at his console, his hands moved about automatically as he toggled switches and entered, having done so countless times before; instead, the enigmatic crewmember turned his thoughts inwards. I told you I wouldn't stand by any longer—and I intend to keep my word, Wilhelm, he thought as the ship rose away from the docking platform and began its flight from the orbital colony that was Vector's headquarters.
It is time to grant humanity the chance to decide its own future—whether it is for better or worse.
א ב ג ד ה ו ז ח ט י ך כ ל
Walking through the halls of the Dämmerung as he made his way from the docking platform, Wilhelm nodded slightly to individual under his employ who cast him wondering glances, but other than that paid them no mind. Finally stopping before an observation window, Wilhelm turned and watched as a single green and white ship exited the hanger of the colony and became an ever-shrinking object against the backdrop of the cosmos. Long after the ship had disappeared, the director of Vector Industries continued to stare at the spot where it had been, until he suddenly folded his hands behind his back once more and smiled.
"I see…. So you have truly decided, then, my old friend," he spoke, nodding to the window. Crossing his arms, he brought a single hand to his chin and closed his crimson eyes in thought. "This promises to be quite fascinating, indeed," he concluded, and continued his silent vigil of the galaxy for a long while after.
א ב ג ד ה ו ז ח ט י ך כ ל
Unknown to anyone, the Compass of Chaos and Order sharply reoriented its axis under the influence of some unknown phenomenon—and the Ring of Chaos, that had remained hitherto motionless, moved.
א ב ג ד ה ו ז ח ט י ך כ ל