((I realized last Chapter, I said Xehanort instead of Xemnas… Pardon my mistake. I'm using his correct name from now on. Just wanted to avoid any confusion
Oh. And spoiler warning for those people who haven't finished Kingdom Hearts 2 from this point on))
The portal of darkness led him to a room, almost completely white. Axel almost laughed at the contrast it was to the rest of the city. There was another black cloaked man in the room, staring out a gigantic window. Axel wondered if these people had ever heard of colors, or if they just preferred to live in such drab boredom. His hair would stick out like a sore thumb. Oh well. It would liven things up at least.
"That will be all, Saix." A deep, cultured, voice spoke. Obviously the unknown, black-cloaked man. The blue-haired man, which had to be Saix, bowed and stepped backward into his portal of darkness. Axel looked at the empty air, where Saix had just been standing, and shook his head. Maybe it would have been better to try his luck on the dark streets.
The other man turned from the window, pulling the hood away from his face. Long silver hair framed a narrow face. He had dark, golden skin and eyes to match. "I am Xemnas." He introduced, as if that should explain everything. Axel gave him a face that made it clear it didn't. He was getting tired of these little guessing games. How everyone seemed to know who he was, but himself.
Xemnas's lips curled into a smile and he pointed to the unfinished, heart-shaped orange moon that he had been looking at outside the window. "Do you see that?"
It was a rhetorical question, but Axel answered anyway. "Kind of hard not to." He muttered under his breath. Xemnas ignored the comment and continued. "Kingdom Hearts. That's what it is going to be. It is a long time from being finished, but once it is… it will be magnificent."
"Love the art project" Axel interjected, "But I really don't see—"
"Patience, Axel. There will be time for questions later." As they were staring at what Xemnas called "Kingdom Hearts," Axel saw a tiny pink heart rise from the ground and become part of the structure. He again felt that immense longing. He wanted that heart. Wanted it more than anything else. His entire being craved after it, and he knew that without the heart, he was not whole.
Axel came back to himself and blinked, finding himself pressed against the glass of the window. He frowned. He hadn't even been standing that close to the window before he saw the heart. He backed up a few feet, and Xemnas continued his speech.
"You feel the longing for a heart, just as we all do. All of us. Members of Organization XIII. Nobodies. We are Nobodies because we do not have hearts. But… gain a heart, and a Nobody becomes a real person. That is the only difference between us and them." Xemnas gestured toward the sculpture in the sky. "When it is finished, Kingdom Hearts will be able to grant us our deepest desire. Kingdom Hearts will have a heart for all of us."
Axel looked determinedly at Kingdom Hearts for a few seconds before turning back to Xemnas. "How can I help?" He would do anything for it to be finished. To have a heart of his own.
"Join us" Xemnas beckoned.
Axel smiled. "That's it? No problem."
Xemnas smirked as though Axel had gotten himself into much more than he bargained for. "Glad to have you. You will be briefed on your first assignment later. But now… your questions, as promised."
Axel stared for a moment. Of course, how could he forget? He had been so caught up in his desire for a heart… He shook his head, as if dispelling the thought. Straight down to business… "Who am I?"
It seemed as though Xemnas was expecting that question. The answer was quick and smooth, as though he had done this a lot. "You are a Nobody, like us. Number VIII in Organization XIII. Axel, as I'm sure you've remembered."
Axel shook his head, frustrated. They had to know who he was. They knew his name, what he was, what he wanted. They had to know the rest! "No. My past. Where did I come from? How did I get here? Why don't I remember anything!"
Xemnas's face twisted into a mischievous smile. He knew the answer, Axel was sure of it. But he wasn't going to tell him. "In time, Axel. In time you will remember who created you. But that is for you to discover."
Axel's mouth dropped open and he glared at his new master. "What!"
Xemnas's expression was no longer pleasant. "Once Kingdom Hearts is complete, you will have no use for your 'past.'" He created a bubble of darkness behind him, and turned to step through.
"Wait!" Axel called after him. "What am I supposed to do now?"
Xemnas walked through the portal and disappeared, and Axel was left glaring at the empty air.
"Find Sora" His voice echoed in the chamber, until Axel was left alone.