Inverted Sky: KH 358/2 Days
Chapter 13: Twilight Town part III
Xion's Log: Day 151
"I'm afraid I have no knowledge of this individual you speak of." DiZ said with a slow shrug of his shoulders.
The man himself standing together with Riku, Xion and King Mickey. The trio having returned back to the mansion, yet brought some troubling news along with them. After the raven-haired girl explained who she encountered on the island, it was more clear than ever that there were more eyes on this place, than they expected. Having this, atop of dealing with the Organization, felt like way more than they could handle on their own.
"The name sounds vaguely familiar, but I do not recall anything about where or when I might have heard it." the man continued, his head tilted down in thought.
As a deafening silence began filling the underground laboratory, a clear question was seen in their eyes; 'What now?' With all that has been revealed, it was impossible to think that things would smooth over. But this quiet was swiftly broken when a voice spoke up from the doorway that lead back to the mansion. "I think we're safe for time being."
As they each turned in this direction, the four saw Namine standing nearby with a determined and confident expression. Though only Riku noticed that this it was forced, he was still quite impressed by the girl. Her having to put her work on hold, ever since Sora began mutating. Which the silver-haired boy was sure would make Namine feel all the worse, but she appeared to be pushing forward regardless.
"What makes you say that?" Riku questioned curiously, raising a brow in the process.
"If he was really serious about getting to Sora, he could have probably stormed this place long ago. But the simple fact that he hasn't, means he genuinely doesn't mean Sora any harm." she started, briefly glancing toward Xion as the girl was simply staring at the blond.
Though this was the first time they officially met, the pair immediately felt like they had known one another for years. However, only one of them knew what this meant, and she wasn't going to say anything just yet.
"Even if his intentions for her aren't good...he does at least want her alive. And by knowing that, I think he was actually being honest when you mentioned that he wanted to save Sora." Namine continued, to which the others gave a slow nod in response.
"The biggest question now becomes...how much longer is he going to wait before deciding that we're simply hiding Sora from him?" she added in a more worried tone.
"And on top of that...we also have to worry about the Organization tracking our movements." Riku claimed with a heavy sigh, looking down slowly as he did.
"If only there was a way to pit the two sides against one another. Then we could alleviate some of this intensity." the silver-haired boy muttered while shaking his head, not having any ideas of how to do this.
However, following these words, a spark of realization flashed in Xion's eyes. "That's...actually not such a bad idea." she muttered silently, a small smirk curling her lips.
"And it might not be as impossible as one might think." she continued, glancing between the others as they each turned toward her.
"How?" was all Riku and Namine asked in near unison.
"Well, it won't be easy...and could fail spectacularly with even the slightest misstep." Xion began with a shrug of her shoulders, demonstrating the likelihood of success.
"But if it does work, we'll definitely buy ourselves time for Sora to recover." she continued, to which the others turned to one another for a quick moment before looking back to the girl.
Their expressions clearly showing that they wanted the girl to at least tell them her plan. Seeing this, Xion gained a small smile and nodded slowly. "Alright...firstly..."
Xion's Log: Day 163
It looks like things are going well. My plan to get Genesis onto the Organization's 'hit list' seems to be going well, at least from our end. Me, Riku, Donald, and Mickey have been forming illusions of Genesis in areas that are considered 'hot spots' for Heartless activity. And since the Organization typically sent me on missions to those spots, news of Genesis 'snooping around' should reach the Superior in a matter of days. Even if it's just an investigation of who Genesis is, they're bound to come into conflict...one way or another.
Or at least, that's the hope. Because I'm not apart of the Organization anymore, I can't say for certain if all the same 'hot spots' are still around. Which is why I've started placing some illusions in other, more populated areas. If the locals are talking about something or someone strange, Xigbar, Saix or Xaldin will definitely look into it. And out of everyone in the Organization, they would be the ones to report about something like this. Now we just have to wait and see if they take the bait.
Xion took in and let out a heavy sigh while looking down, rubbing her eyes slowly as she did. 'Ugh...I feel a headache developing.' she mused to herself, yet shook her head briefly.
'I better get ready to go, we need to do a bit of spying to see if the Organization is falling into our trap.' the girl continued while standing up and stretching both arms over her head.
'Though...I am kinda hoping I can see Roxas and Axel today.' she added inwardly before heading out of the room that she was given inside the mansion.
Upon exiting however, the raven-haired girl saw Namine standing just a few steps away with a somewhat sheepish expression. Slowly approaching the blond, Xion offered a small smile and wave to the other girl. Whom had been actively avoiding her, even after their first official meeting. Despite Xion attempting to speak to Namine, the teen herself kept rushing off while claiming that she had something to do. So to see her actually waiting for the black-haired girl, was quite the surprising turn.
"Um...hey..." the blond spoke up after briefly clearing her throat and waving back in greeting.
"Hi..." Xion responded, feeling quite awkward as she could only think to offer another smile.
"I'll be joining you on your mission today. Riku and Donald are on their own assignment, while Goofy and Mickey will be guarding the mansion." Namine informed as she was very obviously nervous.
"Oh...well, I look forward to working with you. And...it's nice to meet you properly." Xion said softly, trying to sound as gentle as possible.
The blond looked down briefly with a silent sigh, her head slowly nodded to these words. "I'm really sorry for avoiding you so much. It honestly is very nice to meet you as well." she responded while giving an actual bow.
"It's alright, you don't need to apologize." Xion said quickly as she gave an encouraging gaze.
Just as the raven-haired girl was about to continue however, Namine shook her head firmly while looking to Xion once more. "No...I really do." she claimed, her gaze briefly shifting down in clear shame.
"I've been very rude toward you this whole time, and all because of my own faults." the blond continued, making the other girl blink a few times in question as to what she meant.
"I...I have a lot of guilt when it comes to Sora and her friends, as I'm mostly responsible for the state she's currently in. So when I see you, I'm constantly reminded of my mistakes. And that's definitely not fair to you." she stated, slowly looking down once more as she could no longer keep eye contact.
Xion blinked a few times from hearing this. It was very close to what she suspected, but the sheer emotion behind these words was so much more than she could have prepared for. Despite sensing that Namine was a Nobody, the way she poured her feelings into her statement, made it truly seem like she had a heart. 'But how can that be?' she thought briefly to herself before she simply placed a hand to Namine's shoulder.
"It's okay, I appreciate you telling me." Xion started with an understanding gaze and smile.
The blond slowly met the other girl's eyes, to which she nodded her head slowly. "Of course, though...I want to do more than that. I want to help however I can, and to truly make up for the things I've done." she declared in a more determined manner than ever before.
This took Xion by surprise as she found herself just blinking once more. After a moment of looking at the firm look in Namine's eyes, the raven-haired teen merely nodded her head. "In that case...I'll be more than happy to accept your help." she responded while unconsciously smiling.
"In that case...we better get going." the blond said with a much more sheepish expression and chuckle.
Seeing this sudden change, other girl couldn't help but chuckle as well. "Yeah...we're heading to the Sunset Terrace to check on the illusion I set up about a week ago." she uttered out while looking to the side for a moment.
"I felt something odd around it the other day, so I want to make sure it's only pulling the attention of those we want to draw in." the raven-haired teen added in a somewhat more serious tone.
After sharing a brief glance and mirroring nod, the pair headed off on their way. Taking the train to the Sunset Station, they noticed a pair of pink-haired sisters riding with them. Yet not long after they arrived, these two disappeared into the large crowd. There being some sort of big event going on in the Market Street, which allowed Xion and Namine to easily slip away from the gathering without being noticed. As they moved up the path toward the top of the hill, they could see someone already standing there.
Namine turned her gaze toward Xion, whom shook her head to show that it wasn't her illusion. This put them immediately on edge as they began sneaking their way further up the incline. The pair trying to make sure that they would see this individual, before the individual would see them. With each gradual step, their heart beat picked up ever so slightly. Then, as they crested the hill, Xion's eyes blinked many times upon recognizing the person standing at the top of the hill. "Zack?" she uttered out, said man's back facing the two as he seemed to be looking out toward the sun.
As Zack himself turned around, he raised a brow briefly toward the teens before letting out a sigh in solace. "So you're the one who set up that illusion." he muttered silently with a slow nod, crossing his arms in the process.
"That's honestly a huge relief...I was worried that 'he' was targeting this world for some reason or another." the man continued, gaining a small smile while glancing between the two.
Xion smiled lightly from this, being grateful that the oddity she felt around the illusion was an ally. Though, she soon turned to Namine, when noticing the blond's confusion at the situation. "This is Zack Fair, he's one of Hercules' training friends." she introduced, gesturing to the man as she did.
Zack himself just offered a small grin, and even struck his typical victory pose after winning a battle in the Coliseum. "That's me, former SOLDIER First Class...Zack Fair." he announced proudly while puffing his chest slightly.
"Not that either of you know what that means." Zack added a bit more sheepishly, letting out a soft chuckle.
After this though, his expression became a bit more serious than before. The man's eyes hardened slightly, and his demeanor shifted to a more urgent one. "But I do have to ask..." he started silently as he looked between the teens once more.
"...how do you know Genesis?" he finished, his tone showing the tenseness between him and the red-haired man.
However, because of what this explanation would entail, it was something they couldn't readily tell out in the open. Therefore, after the girls shared a glance of understanding, they turned back to Zack with clear intention. This intention being, that they would indeed tell him everything, but not here. The raven-haired man had picked up on this instantly, to which he nodded slowly in response. "Well...I suppose the long version doesn't need to be explained now, but what about the short version?"
Xion couldn't help but smile from this, her recalling that Hercules made mention of the fact that Zack wasn't always very patient when they were younger. 'I makes sense now.' she thought to herself briefly.
"The short version is...he attacked, then ran off saying that we'd meet again." the girl in black stated in a simple manner, yet her expression alone let Zack know almost everything he needed to know.
Said man gave a slow nod of his head to this while smirking lightly; "Well...now I'm looking forward to hearing the long version." he hummed out in a soft chuckle.
Xion and Namine shared a returning nod, before they each started making their way back down the hill. As they did however, Xion left an additional illusion behind. 'If Zack noticed even an illusion of Genesis, then the reverse should probably also hold true.' she thought to herself with a small smirk.
'Luring the Organization is only one part of the plan...we also have to lure Genesis as well.' Xion continued as she continued on, rubbing the side of her head as the migraine was still present.
A new ally has joined the group, but how much help can he offer against their foes? We'll find out more in the coming chapters. But I hope all of you enjoyed this chapter, and will let me know what you thought of it. Until next time.