Warnings: The same ones that have been in all of these things.
Pairings: Established Roxas/Namine, Established Sora/Kairi, One-Sided (Though reciprocated hate) Larxene/Naminé, Implied One-Sided (Possibly Non-Consensual) Axel/Saix, innuendo all over the place.
Unravel the Heart
Chapter 5: Apple Custard Pie
Apple ~ Custard ~ Pie
Naminé was on her knees, Heathen Tome open on the ground as she quickly flipped pages, her eyes busily scanning each new sheet of white with meticulous rapidity before moving on. Roxas was nearby, kneeling behind a large wall of sandbags, laced with barbed wire, a Keyblade held in one hand and a grenade held in the other. Gritting his teeth, he leaped up from his cover, throwing the grenade and firing a few beams of light from his Keyblade. A satisfied smirk could be seen be on his face before he quickly ducked back down.
"How's it coming, Naminé?" he called over to her.
Naminé answered without lifting her eyes from the pages. "I don't know how in the hell he managed to pull this off. The amount of hexes and curses I'm going to need to perform in order to break this barrier is ridiculous! Ohhh, and I even have to start messing with some memories!" she complained, flustered.
From the other side of the wall of defense, black flames suddenly shot by, heating the air above them. Roxas and Naminé both ducked swiftly, the sudden heat burning the skin on their necks. "Well I know this is obviously a delicate, long procedure," Roxas replied, standing as the flames cleared to fire off more bursts of light. "But time is definitely of the essence here!"
A multitude of Soul Snatchers were present before him, all leering and drooling in evident hunger, always moving closer to where Roxas and Naminé lay defended. They were becoming quite hard to thin out with Roxas being the sole offensive player in this area. The rest of their party were all scattered about, hiding behind their own Sandbags which Lexaeus had crafted for everyone, protected by the mystical might of the earth.
The group had done as Zero instructed, much to their own chagrin to be following his advice, and had found that Xemnas was indeed absent from The Castle That Never Was, although the structure itself had been quite severely damaged. Naminé had urged checking Castle Oblivion, having received a strong vibe from it, but upon arrival, they found the place literally swarming with Soul Snatchers.
And to make matters worse, a giant, void-like barrier had been erected around the entire Castle. Naminé would need time to figure out how to break it, and unfortunately, time was one thing they were all beginning to lack as they squared off against these powerful new Heartless. At the very least, though, Lexaeus's magical sandbags had boxed them all in, but that wasn't going to prove very useful if the offensive effort ceased too greatly and they breeched the defense.
And much to The Key of Destiny's annoyance, some of these Soul Snatchers were now demonstrating the ability to breathe fire. Axel hadn't been too pleased with that development either, claiming they were ripping on his mad skills.
"I know that time is a factor, Roxas!" Naminé snapped back to him, replying to that thing he said earlier. Remember that? Yeah. "And I am doing the best that I can, but Heathen Magic has a lot of research involved if I don't want to go losing my soul! And before you ask, yes, this is as far as we can get from the barrier without me losing my detection of it. I could probably do this faster if we moved closer, but you're already having a hard time as it is!"
Roxas growled in frustration as he sniped off another of the foul creatures, leaving a rough dozen still making their way toward him. "Freeze!" he called as he spun his blade overhead, releasing a circular shower of ice particles to hail down upon them. The plan was met with marginal success as the creatures began to slow their advancement, roaring in confusion as to why.
Suddenly, a large slab of rock was jammed through one of their heads. Lexaeus had pounced out of seemingly nowhere upon the howling creature, driving his Axe Sword into its face repeatedly and without remorse. It vanished into a cloud of black as he leaped off its body, tackling two more of them in a single lunge and battering them. Roxas was rather dumbfounded at the barbaric display, especially seeing as Lexaeus had opted to wear a loincloth for some reason. He looked like a jungle man or something.
However, he quickly got over it and started blasting light to exterminate the clouds. Wouldn't do to have them reforming. In a matter of moments after the unexpected arrival, Lexaeus had dispatched all the creatures harrying Roxas and Naminé, and proceeded to approach the pair, flexing his pecs in a show-offy fashion.
"Uh, thanks Lex. …Wanna explain…" he looked Lexaeus up and down and gestured vaguely at his appearance. "…this, whole… thing?"
Lexaeus shook his mighty head. "No."
"…Kay."
"Naminé, how is the progress going?"
"I dunno. I think the book is saying I have to dress like an actual witch. Like, with the pointy hat and everything."
Lexaeus proceeded to hand her one. Where he had obtained it, and where he had been hiding it shall remain a mysterious mystery.
Naminé accepted this gift with reverent gratitude and placed it firmly upon her head. It was a purple thing adorned with a skull insignia on the side of a red ribbon, which was tied around the cone-like point of the hat. The wide rim was curved upward slightly, and had a small but fashionable-looking rip on the side.
"This should work~" she said happily, waving a hand at herself. Instantly, her white dress also turned purple. She gained a mantle over her shoulders of deep violet, and her legs became wrapped in black and red striped tights. Her white sandals transformed into black boots, with some cool laces on them. She now bore the visage of a complete and total witch, looking pretty sly, and very awesome.
"Naminé, you look hot like that." Roxas very quickly pointed out.
"Shut up Roxas, there will be time for the sexings later. For now, I have a barrier to break!"
Roxas appeared rather dumbfounded at the mention of sexings, but was ignored by Naminé. She hopped over Lexaeus' magical sandbags and leaped onto the large man's back, draping herself over his shoulder. "Full speed ahead Parlyboop! Your mistress must reach the Castle! Show me the strength of a magical gumdrop-power snorybloop!"
Lexaeus whinnied dramatically and charged forward, heading toward the Castle and more of the Soul Snatchers, which were being battled by the remaining members of the party further ahead.
Roxas was mystified by the display.
Wha~Pshhh
Xemnas sat in a very solemn, badass fashion on his throne. Deep within the halls of Castle Oblivion, he resided in solitude, a single viewing orb standing before him in his dimly lit room. He watched as his former pawns danced about in front of the castle, battling against the new darklings he had come to command.
Yes, soon. Soon they would walk right into his trap. The curse would be broken, and they would enter the castle, beaten and exhausted, only to face his wrath. And then he would use the very power they needed – the scornful magic of the witch – and he would turn her against them. They would be eradicated, and the Key-bearers would be his slaves. And once his Kingdom Hearts was complete… the worlds would be his.
You will not succeed. A voice echoed within his mind. He glared at its presence. For too long now he had been hearing this voice. Far, far too long. Only in his moments of solitude could he indulge it with an answer.
"Be silent."
I will not. But it matters little. You will not heed my warnings. You will be destroyed.
"Yes, you keep mentioning that. I will be destroyed by the Savage and the Witch, and you will come into being."
That is correct.
"And despite telling me these apparent "facts", you seem convinced they will happen regardless, even should I be forewarned?"
I already said you would not heed such warnings. And even if you did, there would be no avoiding it. You are a casualty of destiny. You will be destroyed by them, even if you actively try to avoid it.
"And yet you yourself have admitted that you do not know my personal thoughts. Only that which I say to you. You're awfully certain of yourself considering you have no idea what I am planning."
Need I repeat myself? It makes no difference. You will fail.
Xemnas only smiled now. "We shall see."
He then rose from his throne and stepped around his viewing globe, heading toward the exit to prepare for his encounter with his aggressors. Pushing the chamber doors open, he emerged into the bright, pure white halls of the Castle. A speck of black caught his notice, leaning casually against a far wall.
"So you have come." He greeted.
Zexion nodded mutely in response. As Xemnas approached him, he took a more appropriate posture, arms crossed over his chest. "I have brought what you asked for."
"Excellent." Xemnas replied, holding out his hand expectantly.
Zexion produced a shining, golden card from within his cloak, the number "07" bright and visible upon it. "I expect this should do the trick?"
A wicked smile curled at Xemnas's lips. "Indeed." In his awaiting palm, a cloud of darkness was conjured forth, taking shape and solidifying into a dark, rectangular object. "And this is for you." He stated, handing the object to the Schemer.
Zexion gingerly took the card from him between two fingers, tucking it away as he handed over the Kingdom Card in turn. "Then our business is complete, yes?"
"You have performed admirably. I am pleased that our partnership can end on professional terms, Number Six. The same will not be said for your former comrades."
"Yes, I'm sure you have a grisly fate cooked up for them and all that." Zexion responded with disinterest as he turned to leave. "It's been a real thrill, Xemnas." He added, this time somewhat sarcastically. A moment later, he was gone.
And you see. This is why you will fail.
"You simply have no idea, do you?" Xemnas replied. He then continued onward, ready to greet his guests.
Alakazam
Naminé stood before the mystical wall that prevented entry into the great, foreboding castle. Behind her, Xaldin was beating back a few more Soul Snatchers with his awesome pimp cane, while Xigbar and Lexaeus were assisting him in manners not so awesome that they deserve specific mention. Everyone else was off still fighting more of them, getting closer and closer to ridding the area of them for good.
For whatever reason, only Larxene stood next to Naminé, apparently having elected to take the position as her bodyguard since Roxas was too busy killing things to do it. It was very weird and backwards that Larxene was doing this while Roxas wasn't. It was as if the roles had been reversed or some crazy shit like that.
"You gonna open this thing or what? I'm getting impatient."
Naminé glared. God, she hated this woman so much. More than words could describe. "I'm going, hold your damn horses."
"Whatever. Just hurry the hell up and do your mahou shoujo bullshit so we can get in there and kick Xemnas's pansy ass."
Naminé rolled her eyes, but took a deep breath regardless. She stared at the barrier before her and with resolution, opened up her Heathen Tome and cried out the magical incantation.
"Bubblegum Ruspa, Ambasezzle! Raspberry, blueberry, alakazizzle! Moon crystal power, justice and love! Curse-breaker power, strength from above! Naminé beeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeam! 3" Naminé then placed her hands in a heart shape over her chest and launched a giant pretty pink beam of love and justice at the barrier, causing it to break.
…
Yes. All of that just happened. You are not high, but I might be.
Larxene stared at Naminé with what was possibly the most blank, dumbfounded expression ever to exist in the universe. Ever.
Standing up straight and lowering her hands, Naminé coughed. "Uhm, yes. Well. Shall we go?"
Without waiting for an answer, she stepped forward, heading for the large front doors. Larxene continued to stare, not sure what the hell just happened. Behind her, the fighting had ceased as everyone had finally succeeded in clearing out the Soul Snatchers, and they all made to regroup where Larxene was standing. But it seemed as though not a one of them had seen what Larxene had seen. And if she told them, she just knew no one would fucking believe her.
"Awesome! The barrier is down!" Sora cried happily. "Wait up Naminé!" he yelled after her, running to catch up. Kairi flat-lined her mouth and stared after him in a disapproving fashion for a moment before making to follow him, Roxas close behind.
"You alright, Larxene?" Axel asked, stepping up to the blond woman with a curious look on his face.
Larxene slowly turned to face him, her face still blank. "…Yeah, sure." She responded, walking off without another word.
Axel scratched his head and shrugged. "She is one weird bitch. Seriously."
Nearby, Saïx nodded, while sipping some tea he had for some reason.
Deciding it would be best to avoid further questioning, the motley crew wasted time no further and advanced into the hallways of the Castle, advancing the plot as well. Because you know, this story does have one.
After some uneventful passage through winding hallways (which Naminé assured everyone she knew how to navigate), the party eventually found themselves in a very large, dome-like room.
"Fuck!" Naminé cried loudly, getting everyone's attention. "I think Xemnas rearranged this place somehow! We weren't supposed to arrive here!"
Larxene contemplated beating Naminé over the head with a tire iron for her negligence. "If you were our guide, shouldn't you have been able to check that before we went wandering blindly into this place?"
Naminé glared back. "I'd like to see you do better!"
Larxene smirked. "Gladly."
Much to everyone's surprise, Larxene swiftly stepped forward and kneed Naminé in the stomach, knocking the wind out of her before tossing her across the room carelessly. She then conjured forth a Corridor of Darkness and waved. "Ta ta everyone! I'm going to go and find Xemnas now."
And then she was gone.
Roxas was seething with anger as he ran over to Naminé to check if she was alright. That bitch was awful. Roxas was gonna have to get some thunder-proof armor later and fuck her shit up.
Saïx, meanwhile, sighed. "What is she thinking? She can't handle Xemnas alone. That simpleton is going to get herself killed."
"Her fate is of little concern as of present." A chill ran through most of the present individuals as the deep, resonating voice echoed through the large, white room they were gathered in. Another Corridor appeared, and out from the twisting shadows stepped Xemnas, garbed in robes of melded black and white, a stony, solemn expression adorning his features.
Sora leaped before Roxas and Naminé, who was still crouched on the floor, brandishing the Ultima Weapon as he entered a battle-ready stance. Behind him, Roxas attempted to help Naminé to her feet while the other members of the Organization all readied themselves for combat as well.
"You're pretty stupid Xemnas!" Sora called challengingly. "You're totally outnumbered! And it's not like you're that douchebag, Zero, so that actually means something!"
"Your numbers matter little." Xemnas replied slowly, waving his arms dramatically. "Your petty powers cannot hope to match mine. Behoooooooold." and as he said this, he gestured broadly at the far wall of the room, where a large window had appeared. Outside of this window, a huge, heart-shaped moon cast its eerie glow upon the dark sky.
"Kingdom Hearts!" Axel stared with confusion. "What's it doing here?"
Demyx was quite confused as well, furrowing his brow at the sight. "Shouldn't it be back in The World That Never Was?"
An empty chuckle resonated from within Xemnas. "My Kingdom Hearts… it is nearly complete. Very soon, it shall fill me with its power. For you see… it, and I, have reached an understanding. Kingdom Hearts longs for its completion. It desires the hearts held by the felled Heartless, so that it may cast its glow upon the Darkness. And I desire the power that a heart affords. In exchange for bringing forth the means for its completion, Kingdom Hearts has filled me with its might."
Xemnas's eyes were aglow with false delight as a wicked smile curved at his lips. "Light and Darkness are arbitrary forces. They know not the boundaries of moral limitation. And Nothingness… all is welcome before its hollow void. I will erase you all… and then, I will bring Kingdom Hearts to its completion!" Xemnas announced, finishing his dramatic speech with raised arms as his body began to glow.
"No way…" Sora muttered. "Kingdom Hearts is helping him just because he agreed to finish it?"
"That can't be right…" Kairi, who was standing behind Lexaeus for safety, shook her head. "It would never help someone who wanted to bring harm to the worlds!" With conviction lighting her glare, Kairi waved her arms, summoning a few orbs of Holy energy and launching them at Xemnas. "The light will prove your lies!"
Xemnas stood, unflinching, as the orbs made contact with his body, having absolutely no visible effect. He laughed again. "Your light has done nothing but identify the truth. The Light will not harm me. Not so long as the True Light of Kingdom Hearts remains within."
"Huh. So that's how it is." Xigbar spoke up, drawing the attention of the masses. "All his flowery talk is pretty transparent. Kingdom Hearts isn't cooperating or anything like that. Xemnas is just using all that Nothingness of his to house the light. He doesn't have a heart, so it can't guide him or hurt him."
"Wait, uh… what?" Demyx asked, still confused.
"While we were off minding other matters," Lexaeus replied to him. "Xemnas must have slowly been bringing himself closer and closer to Kingdom Hearts, until finally he could house its Light inside of him."
"Instant exposure to that kind of light would kill a Nobody like us." Xaldin added. "But because he can manipulate Nothingness… he could carve a hollow within himself for the light to reside without harming him."
"And now he's got the defense of Kingdom Hearts, weather it wants him to have it or not."
Xemnas sighed, but the smile did not leave him. "Very good. You do not miss a thing. I suppose that would be expected from my three former colleagues. A shame your numbers have dwindled a bit. Vexen's death must have been a terrible loss. And now you've even lost Zexion." This statement took the others by surprise, and Xemnas capitalized on this moment with an attack. "Vanish!" he called, firing bolts of Nothingness from his hand at Sora.
Sora reacted barely in time to parry the incoming projectiles, but not quickly enough to prevent them from grazing across his skin, opening up cuts where they touched. Roxas hoisted one of Naminé's arms over his shoulder, cursing Larxene under his breath as he made to move away with her. However, Xemnas was very quickly forgetting Sora, flying by overhead to chase the pair of retreating blondes in their moment of vulnerability.
"Freeze!" Sora called, seeing Xemnas's intent and firing a Blizzaga from his Keyblade to intercept him. A red glow erupted from the palm of Xemnas's hand as he twirled in midair, deflecting the attack as the glow formed itself into a solid blade. However, the Superior's vision was quickly obscured as Xigbar had suddenly appeared before him, opening fire without hesitation. Xemnas grunted as he conjured another ethereal blade and swung the two of them in wide arcs to block the incoming projectiles.
As he was occupied with this task, however, a geyser of water sprung forth beneath him, catching him underfoot and rising higher and higher until he was slammed into the high ceiling of the operatic room. This was very quickly followed by a storm of earth and stone, swirling dangerously in a funnel of wind, being flung at the man's present location. The attacks seemed to hit their mark as the slabs of solid matter smashed into the ceiling where Xemnas had been suspended, further driven home by gale-force winds.
Sora saw this opportunity to layer an extra bit of ownage onto the pile, calling out another few Blizzard incantations as the blocks of ice froze the winds and rock in place, binding Xemnas to the ceiling beneath them.
Demyx turned to look at Xaldin. Xaldin looked at Sora. Sora looked at Axel. They all nodded to one another. Shit was about to get so real.
With a few strums from nimble fingers, Demyx created several columns of water all around the room, acting like stationary geysers as they gushed and flowed, waiting for direction. Xaldin happily supplied that direction, sending a lance into each waiting column, surrounded by the wind. As the lances entered, the wind hollowed out the water, turning them into aquatic tunnels as they moved about like tentacles, controlled by Xaldin's mastery of the wind.
Each of the watery tentacles then dove at the frozen mass on the ceiling, plunging their tips into it with the aid of the spears within them. Sora then twirled his blade high overhead, spinning it in a wide circle as he repeatedly muttered "Blizzaga, Aeroga, Blizzaga, Aeroga…", and then finally called out "Ice Fan!"
At the command, a wave of icy wind blew out from the spinning propeller of a Keyblade, freezing all the water in the room. Each of the watery tentacles was now a hollowed out arc of ice, connecting to the central icy tomb where Xemnas was being held. Axel took his cue and smirked, releasing his Chakrams. As he let go, the twin wheels hovered in midair, just beneath his palms, spinning rapidly as a large amount of heat was gathered to them. Living up to his namesake, Axel was soon twirling large wheels of dancing flames, letting the fires grow hotter for just a tad longer.
"Axel!" Lexaeus called. "Do it now! I feel him stirring." The large man had a palm to the ground, feeling the vibrations which reverberated through the room, his eyes trained calmly on the binding place of Xemnas.
Axel nodded and grinned widely. "Burn, baby!" he shouted, spreading his palms out. As he did so, the Chakrams flew forward as if flung by a slingshot, zooming all around the room and making contact with each of the frozen pillars. As they made contact, the superheated flames were released into the hollow, cold cavities of the arcs.
And I'm sure we all remember what happens when frosted air experiences very sudden and rapid temperature acceleration.
A sickening crack was heard throughout all the ice for but a second. And after that second passed, a huge, fiery explosion burst forth from the icy tomb, destroying a large portion of the ceiling. Xaldin cast windy shields, Lexaeus summoned slabs of rock for himself and Kairi, Demyx blanketed himself in a sphere of water, and Sora and Roxas cast reflect spells to repel the oncoming backlash of the explosion. Xigbar casually warped out of the way of any incoming danger, while Saïx simply stood still, apparently untouched by anything.
Shit had just gotten ridiculously real.
When all the debris had finally settled and the danger had cleared, the group of attackers all let down their shields. Lying in the middle of the great, damaged room was Xemnas's body, completely still.
"Ha, fuckin' owned." Axel bragged proudly.
But much to his horror, and everyone else's of course, Xemnas's body began to stir. "How the hell is he still kicking after all that?" Roxas asked in disbelief.
Saïx glared and summoned his claymore. He was going to end this. With calm fury, he sprinted forward, prepared to bring the giant weapon down upon the slowly recovering Superior. The weapon crashed, and a large clang was heard as it smacked soundly against the marble floors. He blinked for a moment before it registered with him that Xemnas was gone.
"Truly amazing. You should all be quite proud of yourselves." Xemnas stood away from the group, leaning against the large window as his right hand clutched at his chest, which was heaving with his heavy breathing.
Saïx picked up his weapon from its missed mark, still slightly puzzled over how Xemnas had managed to move away so quickly, but still none too concerned at his sorry state. "You possess quite a great deal of strength, Xemnas." He addressed his former superior apathetically. "But it was truly arrogant of you to think you could contend with all of us."
Xemnas's dark laughter filled the room once again. "Of course it would have been foolish of me to believe that. Even as I am now, that possibility is not a reality. However…" His eyes rose as he stared across the room, his gaze settling on Naminé, who was now standing on her own two feet finally, having recovered from Larxene's assault. "Facing you all alone is hardly what I had in mind."
An Armada Guardian Reedy Yipe
Larxene paced casually through the endless halls of white, whistling to herself and pretending she didn't care about anything. Except she wasn't pretending.
"Seriously, I'm sick of working with those losers. And how did I even get involved in any of this shit? Like I care. I don't really give a fuck if I get my heart back. And Xemnas? Pff, he can do whatever the hell he wants. The only reason I ever started being "good" was because he made me. And now he's all evil? Fine, then I'll just go back to doing whatever I want. Damn."
Larxene clearly enjoyed talking to herself.
"Oh, Larxene, please reconsider."
The woman stopped and turned at the sound of the voice, but immediately shielded her eyes upon turning. A great, bright light was before her, nearly blinding in its radiance. She couldn't make out any distinct shape or form beyond this light, but a voice could be heard from it all the same. "It is true; no vixen is more callous than you, no nymph more savage. But truly, Larxene, it is of the utmost importance for you to maintain the path you have held up until now."
"Who the fuck are you and why should I listen to you?"
"I am merely a friend. A friend who is looking out for your best interests."
"And I guess telling me your name isn't in my best interest?"
"My name is of no importance."
"Of course it isn't. It never is with you enigmatic people, is it?" she replied with an eye roll.
"Larxene, I know that whatever I say will likely have little effect on you – you are very headstrong and do not let others dissuade you easily. It is admirable, but at the same time can be very undesirable. But I will tell you, all the same. The worlds are in desperate need, Larxene. In events to come, their boundaries and fortitudes will be pulled to their limits, and the entirety of all Universes may well cease to exist. If this transpires, all life will cease to exist as well, time will halt, and there will be no hope of a resurrection. This fate can be avoided, however, with your help."
"Seriously?"
"One can be amazed at how much of a difference the actions of one single person can make in a million things. If you simply reconsider your actions and return to the aid of your companions… the future can be saved. But if you are determined to maintain your present course, then you may end up dooming it all."
"No pressure, huh?"
"I know you are skeptical. And you are in no way obligated to believe what I have said. And yet… I know you will make the right decision. Whatever you decide will be what is inevitably fated to occur. I will trust in your judgment, now that you know what is at stake. Just remember, Larxene… the peaceful life you have led in the time of The Organization's truce…"
And then the light faded, and the voice had gone. Larxene was once again alone in the great hallway, blinking the spots out of her vision. "Well shit, how the hell am I supposed to react to tha-"
She stopped mid-sentence as an object caught her attention. A pie sat in the middle of the hallway, steaming and looking pretty delicious. Larxene carefully stepped over to it and picked it up, sniffing it. This was clearly Apple Custard Pie. It had even been pre-sliced for her convenience. She lifted one slice out of the tin and took a bite.
"Holy shit this is delicious…"
A Shoreline Twirl To…
Yuffie Kisaragi was a pretty busy girl most days. Usually she was off fighting crime, or solving mysteries, or doing drugs. But today? No, today she was pretty much bored as shit and had nothing to do. All those weird Heartless that had been cropping up recently were pretty much calling it quits apparently, as none of them had appeared in a while.
The development seemed to be favorable for the rest of the Radiant Garden Defense Committee, but it had Yuffie bored stiff. And she didn't have any drugs on her to relieve her of this boredom, either. Signing loudly, she jumped up from her current position – lying lazily on the roof of Merlin's house – and stretched with a yawn, looking out across the small, cozy collection of houses. Why was peace so boring?
"Hey, Yuffie!" a voice called from below.
Yuffie approached the edge of the roof and investigated, seeing Tifa standing at the doorway to Merlin's place, looking up at her. "What's up Tifa?"
"Get down here, we need to talk. Something's come up."
Yuffie smiled in triumph as she leaped off the roof and landed easily in front of Tifa, running past her into the small cottage. Tifa closed the door behind her, turning to follow her over to the computer, where Cid sat.
"So what's up? Something new and exciting?"
Cid spat on the floor in a very disgusting manner. "Shut your god damn mouth, god damn it. We got serious trouble."
Yuffie stuck her tongue out and made an obscene noise. Cid threw a half-empty beer can at her face.
"What's the trouble?" Squall asked, leaning against the wall nearby. Oh yeah, he was calling himself Squall again. Kinda got sick of Leon.
"I just got me a message from the King." Cid replied, cracking open a new can of beer and looking at his screen. "'Parently there's trouble brewin'. He says there's been a lot of activity in the Realm of Darkness, and it ain't just them new Heartless neither." he explained, taking a deep swig.
"Oooooh, is it mission time?" a small, happy voice cried out. Rikku came bounding into the room through the window, looking eager.
"How the hell did you get in here!" Cid asked, enraged. He then punched Rikku in the face for good measure.
"Ow!" she cried, holding her face.
"She doesn't know how to use a door." came a stoic-sounding voice, which was quickly accompanied by Paine entering the room through the front door of the cottage, followed by Yuna.
"What the hell are ya'll doin' here!"
"We were listening in, because that's what Gullwings do!" Rikku cried, still nursing her swollen face.
"And we want to help stop whatever is happening with these Heartless." Yuna added with a serious tone to her voice.
Cid swore loudly and for ten minutes without stopping. "Fine!" he finally said, spitting at the wall. "King Mickey says that we need to investigate the bad juju goin' on in the ROD. Normally issa place where you can't go 'nless your heart is immersed in Darkness. But he says them retarded chipmunks have been making some kinda special Gummi ship that can get in there, and we'll need an expedition crew to pilot it and check things out."
Nearby, Cloud was sitting on the floor, having a pretend tea party with Aerith. "I'll go. I may be forgiven if I do."
Squall looked over. "All you ever talk about is wanting to be forgiven."
Cloud looked back. "You just whine about being alone."
"I'm still cooler than you."
"Fuck you."
"Argue later ladies!" Cid shouted loudly, punching Rikku in the face again for good measure. "I'm sendin' YRP to get them outa my hair!" he shouted.
"Oh, sorry!" Yuna apologized sheepishly, climbing off of her perch on Cid's head and getting out of his hair.
"Alright, fine. We'll take a ship to Disney Castle and get that special Gummi." Paine added, turning and heading for the door. "We'll let you know how it goes." She then pulled out a Dress Sphere and tapped it with her hand, a flash of light illuminating her body for a moment. As the flash cleared, she was now a small pixie-looking version of herself. "Come on." she ordered her comrades as she flew out the door.
Yuna and Rikku (now nursing two shiners on her face) both nodded and took out their own Fairy Dress Spheres, transforming into their pixie selves and flying after Paine.
"God damn fairy bitches…" Cid muttered. He then looked at the remaining group. "We need to get in touch with Sora and see how things are goin' with him. He's probably out fighting them Heartless, knowing him, so he might not be at the islands. So Aerith, why don't you take a ship to Destiny Islands and check for 'im there, in case he is, and Yuffie and Tifa can take another 'un to search the other worlds with."
"Why do I have to go by myself?" Aerith asked, pouting.
"Because you only have to check one world and probably won't have to do any fightin', and because I said so, bitch!"
Aerith shouted back angrily. "I can fight too, you ornery fuck!"
Cid roared and charged across the room, giving Aerith the savage beating of her life for her insolence. Cloud looked away in fear, and everyone else, even Squall, cringed.
"NOW! Are my orders clear!"
Aerith was a blubbering, bloody mess on the floor. "Yeeeeeees." She sobbed.
"Good! Now get in the kitchen and make me some god damn TEA!"
Aerith picked herself up off the floor and ran into the kitchen really fast.
"Now then, Cloud n' Squall, you two is gonna go out and check other worlds for them messed up Heartless and report your findings back to me, got it!"
Cloud nodded very quickly, and Squall gave a careful, uneasy jerk of his head that sufficed as a nod.
"Good. Now all ya'll get the hell outa my sight! And Aerith! WHERE'S MAH DAMN TEA!"
Cloud, Yuffie, Tifa, and Squall all made great haste in getting out of the cottage, not wanting to witness the fate of poor Aerith. Meanwhile, high above them all, standing on top of one of the larger buildings in the area, Sephiroth gazed down upon the proceedings with a smirk.
"It is as he said. How annoying. And yet… this opens a new door."
Sephiroth then sprouted a wing and took to the sky, following Cloud and Squall covertly.
Madman's Orchestration
"What are you doing?" Zero asked curiously.
DiZ sat at his work table, fiddling away with what looked like small dolls, bearing the likenesses of some familiar faces. "There is little to do at the moment. So I'm passing the time with a hobby. A visual representation, if you will, of what we have accomplished."
Zero noted that several of these dolls were attached to strings, hanging from them like marionettes above a small, comical-looking wooden stage. Zero did get a small chuckle out of it. "And who are you working on now?"
"The One-Winged Angel." DiZ replied with a smirk, running a needle and thread through a small doll which bore a striking resemblance to Sephiroth. "I recently tipped him off with some information he would find useful. And as predicted, he is now following those citizens of my old city."
"Ah yes. And soon enough, we'll be getting visitors, won't we?"
"Indeed, in large part due to the information you let slip to my old friend the King."
Zero turned away and approached a small window, gazing out upon the endless black expanse. "All this puppeteering is getting a little boring."
DiZ glanced up from his busywork, raising his visible brow at Zero. "Pardon?"
"Don't get me wrong, it's quite nice how completely easy it's been to make everyone move as we plan them to, and it's also been a wonderful stroke to my ego to know that at this point, all outcomes are pointing toward victory. But it's still getting boring just sitting in this Tower all day. As lovely as our new living arrangements are, they aren't exactly exciting."
"I suppose I can understand what you're saying."
"Indeed. And it's not like there are even any more cards for me to obtain – I already have all of the ones I can reach. It's rather tedious sitting here, twiddling my thumbs and waiting for the idiots to find the rest for me."
"Let me hazard a guess. You're planning on leaving to go and interfere a bit, aren't you?"
"I suppose I am." Zero replied standing and opening a Corridor of Darkness with little thought on the matter. "They're too busy dealing with Xemnas to find me my prizes. So I suppose if I… help them along a bit, it will expedite the process and they can get back to searching for my cards."
"Yes, and then we get to the part where you systematically pick them off, of course." DiZ responded airily, not paying too much attention. "Fine, do as you will. Just remember not to do anything that will jeopardize our success. It won't do to have you ruining everything when we've managed to progress this far."
"I know, I know. Just keep playing with your little dolls and leave the rest to me."
Zero then stepped through the corridor and was gone a moment later. DiZ snorted and shook his head.
Bamani Meen
Roxas was on the ground, holding his head in pain. His vision was blurry and unfocused as he looked around, trying to see if his comrades were alright. But he was sure they weren't. The last thing he could remember seeing before the onset of pain and disorientation was Xigbar slumped against a wall, not moving, Xaldin heavily injured and bleeding everywhere, and Lexaeus moving in to confront Xemnas alone. He couldn't remember what had happened to Axel and Demyx, or Sora and Kairi, or Saïx either.
He thought he could faintly hear the sounds of battle nearby, but he couldn't think straight. Naminé, Naminé, Naminé… He repeated the words over and over again in his mind. Xemnas had… done something. Roxas didn't know anymore. But he couldn't seem to know anything right now. Or at least, anything that made sense. His mind was on fire, or at least it felt that way, and nothing would work itself out.
"I'm honestly a little disappointed Roxas. Wasn't the power of love and all that garbage supposed to be stronger than this?" a low voice muttered, and based on the feeling of breath on his ear, Roxas guessed that the owner had to be close, especially for him to be able to hear whoever it was over his screaming thoughts.
"Nnghhhuhh… who…?"
"You won't be any help to talk to like this. Here, hold still."
There was another moment of blinding pain, and then suddenly the world seemed to solidify, things becoming more distinct and easy to recognize. Roxas's vision began to focus as his head cleared up a bit, one hand still clutching at his temples to sooth the mild ache.
"Ugh… what happened?"
Zexion crouched next to him, his expression placid as usual, one hand on his crouched knee and the other on Roxas's back. "I constructed a mental barrier inside your mind. It'll wear off in a short while, unfortunately, but for now you should be shielded from her."
"From… who?" Roxas asked, still trying to recollect everything.
"Who else? Naminé."
The name reminded Roxas of what had happened. Naminé had attacked him. Attacked them. She had quickly dispatched Demyx and Axel with a sudden burst of black magic, and when Xigbar had tried to restrain her, Xemnas was there, stabbing the man through the shoulders and flinging him against the wall. He remembered Sora trying to act, but… he couldn't remember. Xaldin had moved in to fight Xemnas but was messed up pretty badly. Roxas was pretty sure Naminé had caused that.
He looked around now, and sure enough, there was Xigbar slumped against that wall, still conscious it seemed but unable to move his arms. Axel was unconscious nearby, or at least Roxas hoped he was just unconscious, and Demyx was crouched next to him, looking worse for ware, as he tried to rouse him. Sora was clear on the other side of the room, just… standing there. Kairi was with him, trying to snap him out of whatever stupor he seemed to be in.
Up ahead, he could see Lexaeus swinging his weapon, trading blows with Xemnas as the two guarded and dodged each other's attacks. Xemnas looked like he was completely healed from whatever damage he had sustained earlier, and was smiling rather triumphantly. Xaldin was face down on the ground some distance away, not moving. He still couldn't see Saïx.
"What happened, Zexion? What did I miss, and where have you been!"
"Calm down and I'll tell you. Xemnas took control of Naminé. She's been using that Heathen Magic too much; her soul has been opened to the Darkness. Xemnas exploited that opening and put all of his darkness into the Barrier that surrounded the castle. When Naminé broke it, all that darkness was sent to her, waiting to be activated. At the same time, removing all of the darkness from his own body is what allowed Xemnas to take on the light of Kingdom Hearts. As he said, Nothingness is an empty cavity. It can be filled by any substance, but not opposing ones."
Roxas was shocked at what he had heard. "He knew we'd need Naminé to get in."
"That's right, and he pulled your strings rather expertly. By controlling her, he turned her magic upon your comrades, and also awakened her latent memory manipulation to put you into a permanent state of mental paralysis, and she seems to have wiped Sora out. I can only hope it's temporary."
"Where is she now!"
"Xemnas sent her to deal with Saïx while he handled a weakened Xaldin and Lexaeus. So Saïx left, to separate her from him. I don't know where they are now."
Roxas stood up now, shaking his head as he glared at Xemnas. "I'll kill him. I'll kill him and I'll free her."
"Sure you will. But let me remind you that you're dealing with a light-infused Xemnas. Not to mention his wounds were healed by Naminé."
"I don't care! I'm gonna kill him!" Roxas shouted, summoning the Serendipitous Two.
Zexion sighed and stepped in front of him. "Would you calm yourself and think rationally for a moment? As you can see, Lexaeus is a skilled fighter. He's holding his own quite nicely, although I doubt he'll win in the long run. If you rush in, blade a-swinging and full of anger, you'll only jeopardize the fight. So alternatively, why don't you watch closely and wait for your opportunity?"
Roxas took a deep breath and attempted to calm himself. He knew Zexion was right. He tended to be right about most things. "Zexion, you still didn't tell me where you have been. Xemnas said you were gone."
"He was obviously trying to mislead you. I've been searching for the cards and staying one step ahead of Zero. With all of you so busy worrying about Xemnas, someone had to pay our actual adversary some attention."
"Oh…" Roxas didn't really know what else to say to that. So he continued to watch as Xemnas and Lexaeus battled. By now, Xemnas was quite aware of the fact that Roxas was up, and that Zexion had arrived, seeing as how they were both in his plain sight, but he hadn't made any action toward them. Roxas knew he should listen to Zexion's advice and wait for an opening instead of just charging in and all, but still… he felt so useless just standing here, letting Lexaeus handle things. "Zexion, can't you do something?" he asked, turning to the Schemer. "Like, make an illusion or something? That'll be all the opening I need to get in there and help!"
Zexion simply sighed as he watched. "Yes, I suppose my involvement will be inevitable, won't it?" However, despite his saying so, he still didn't make any move to actually do anything. Roxas was growing frustrated.
He was pretty much ready to tell Zexion off, but a quick "Shhh" from Zexion caused him to stop and look back at the battle. Xemnas was going in for a swing with his right arm, his left blade smacking away Lexaeus's Axe Sword. Lexaeus pulled back as he swung, and suddenly leaped to the side, rolling out of the way of Xemnas's slash.
Xemnas seemed to be taken by mild surprise by the sudden evasion, but more surprising was the flurry of flower petals which suddenly erupted behind him. Out of this cloud of petals, Marluxia emerged, scythe poised to strike.
"It's over, Xemnas!" he cried as his blade was swung forth in a wide arc, Xemnas's neck as its target.
Xemnas's expression did seem to indicate a lack of expectance as he clumsily dove forward, narrowly avoiding the slice as he mimicked Lexaeus's actions and rolled out of the way. But before his vulnerable posture could be properly taken advantage of, a bubble of light surrounded him and navigated him further away from the two. It then quickly dissolved, revealing him standing upright once again.
Marluxia stood at the ready now, Lexaeus now standing beside him, both looking a tad frustrated that the assassination attempt had failed. Roxas glanced up at Zexion, who simply nodded without looking at him. Roxas nodded back and ran to their side, arming himself as well.
Xemnas looked quite less than pleased at the collection standing before him. "So I see you have been freed from your mental prison, Roxas. A shame the same cannot be said for Sora."
Roxas just snorted, sparing a glance in Sora's direction, still apparently zoned out with Kairi hovering over him protectively, one glowing hand over his head. "I'm sure he's being taken care of."
Xemnas smiled. "I would have to disagree with you. After all, if I were to simply offer my observations on the matter, it certainly seems to me that the three individuals who could be protecting such a helpless individual are all standing before me, and are therefore not standing there."
Panic filled Roxas as he understood how stupid he was being. Before he could react, Xemnas was standing right behind Kairi, a glowing blade at her neck. Roxas had to blink, as there was also still a Xemnas standing in front of him and his comrades as well. It took him a moment to remember that he could create copies of himself.
"What will you do?" Xemnas asked, apparently quite amused. "I could kill her with one quick movement before you could do a thing to stop me."
"And yet you stand there without actually doing it. Really now, Xemnas, none of us have a thing you could possibly want, so why bother hanging the girl's life above our heads? Just kill her if you're going to do it." Zexion spoke in a cold, reprimanding tone of voice.
Roxas looked at him with anger all over his face, unable to believe Zexion had just said such a thing. "What the hell, Zexion! We're supposed to be a team here!"
Zexion sighed in response. "I never agreed to any such arrangement. I work with you lot because it's beneficial for me to do so. If any of you become a hindrance or liability, you aren't worth having around. Case in point, Kairi."
The Xemnas standing near Kairi laughed aloud at that. "Amazing how much trust you fools can place in someone, so sure of how that trust will be rewarded. Zexion is a perfect example of how your hearts can be led astra-" his words were cut off quite suddenly as a pale, glowing blue sword sliced through his middle, causing the clone to fade from nonexistence. The holder of the sword was none other than Zexion, or rather, a copy that Zexion had made.
It took Roxas a moment to remember that Zexion could also create copies of himself, and cast illusions to boot. The Zexion copy dismissed its weapon, an apparent duplicate of Xemnas's Ethereal Blade, and stood protectively in front of Sora and Kairi.
"Zexion… you saved me? But I thought you just said,"
"Misdirection, Kairi. It's what I'm good at."
Kairi frowned a bit, but was none the less grateful for the rescue, seeing as she was much too busy taking care of Sora to fight for herself at the moment. Stupid Sora, being all useless and shit.
Marluxia smirked. "So Xemnas, now it's four on one, and without your little Witch friend to help you."
"Make that six." Axel added, arriving to stand next to Roxas, though looking pretty beat to hell.
"Or maybe just five, if me and Axel only count as half in our current conditions…" Demyx corrected, also having apparently deemed himself worthy for more combat.
"Yeah, but we've got Zex." Axel replied. "When it comes to backup support, he's pretty much the best ya could ask for."
"True…"
Zexion rolled his eyes. "You can save your hero worship for later."
"Oh, FUCK YOU, Zexion!" Axel shouted back heatedly.
Xemnas did not look pleased by these developments. An especially angry look was spared for Zexion, but his fury soon seemed to melt away with another one of his profoundly wicked grins. "I had hoped to be able to keep a few of you among the living. I dare say you could be quite useful to me." he announced with long, drawn out words and more dramatic arm movements. "But if it is your wish to seek obliteration… then I shall graciously grant this wish."
And right now, if the reader would be so inclined, they could imagine that the final phase of "Darkness of the Unknown" by Yoko Shimomura just started playing. Because shit is now intense.
Xemnas once again generated a copy, much to everyone's lack of surprise. But this copy could not be satisfied with such insufficient levels of surprise. So it then generated another Copy. And then that Copy generated a Copy.
Xemnas and his clones then smiled; obviously they were quite satisfied at the new level of surprise they had successfully managed to stir in their victims. And then without waiting further, they moved in to attack. The copies each went after Marluxia, Lexaeus, and Axel and Demyx (proving Demyx's statement about them only counting as one). The original focused his efforts on Roxas.
Roxas quickly brought his Keyblade up to block the first incoming slash, and as he saw another coming from his opponent's other arm, he summoned forth Sora's Ultima Weapon, discarded on the ground near Sora, to his free hand and used it to guard himself further.
"Defend!" Roxas shouted as both Keyblades lit up, surrounding him in a spherical dome of light which quickly exploded outward, knocking Xemnas away. Roxas was then on the offensive, moving in for a fast-paced combination of arcing swings with both blades. Xemnas was quite prepared, raising his own blades to block the slashes as they came, constantly keeping up with the Keybearer's moves and adding his own steps to keep the boy on his toes. A looping display of red and white light defined the visual spectacle that was the conflict between Xemnas and Roxas, both warriors swinging their weapons rapidly and with precision, intending to demonstrate the full mastery of their skills.
Xemnas brought one arm down in another guarded blow, but rather then turn and swing with his other, he dismissed the blade in his other hand and jumped back a step, bringing his empty hand forward and spreading his palm. "Guard!" he commanded, generating a barrier similar to the one Roxas had cast; it shined with wavering light and looked as if it would fade out of reality if looked at a certain way – it was a barrier of Nothingness, canceling matter by virtue of being. Roxas was knocked back by the forceful shield, and Xemnas quickly responded by spinning in a circle, one arm out, and generating a circular array of glowing red lasers, which were launched after but a moment.
Roxas had landed on his back and scrambled to his feet, swinging his two blades in rapid circles barely in time to block the incoming bullets, knocking them away from him. Unfortunately, they weren't all aimed at him.
Axel found himself sloppily leaping out of the way of several of the lasers that came his way, but was the unfortunate victim of a couple grazes from a few of the ones Roxas had just knocked away as well. He swore under his breath as one shot by his leg, bringing him to one knee. "Goddamn whorebag sonofabitch…"
Demyx stood by Axel, attempting to ward off their Xemnas with walls of water, but they seemed to prove as nothing but minor hindrances as he cut through them repeatedly and fired Thorns of Nothingness through every opening he could, keeping Demyx on his toes. "I think we're in over our heads with this one…" he complained, uneasiness decorating his voice, but he kept up his defensive, hoping Axel would get up quickly.
Meanwhile, Marluxia and his Xemnas were engaged in an appropriately graceful dance of a fight, both moving fluidly and dangerously, their movements highlighted with swift red streaks back and forth, their weapons moving too quickly to be seen until they came to a very temporary stop now and then. By virtue of it being a fight involving Marluxia, there was also an abundance of flower petals around the duo. However, Marluxia would be lying to himself if he thought he was going to be the victor. The last time I battled Xemnas, I ended up dead. And now he's more powerful than he was then. How am I supposed to do this? Fatigue was slowly taking its toll on Marluxia while Xemnas did not seem to grow any more tired with his repeated onslaught.
Lexaeus, however, was still in good shape, holding his own against the physical attacks from his Xemnas, while raising the earth around him to deflect projectile techniques. His face maintained a calm, calculating expression no matter how the situation changed. But out of the corner of his eye, he could see Axel and Demyx struggling, and Marluxia was beginning to slow. He is overexerting himself. The Assassin always was one to look for the fast kill. He didn't always fare too well in longer fights, and Lexaeus really had no means of knowing what he had been doing prior to his arrival to the fray.
Zexion was still simply standing in front of Kairi and Sora, watching the battles carefully. I believe Axel may have been hoping for too much, Lexaeus thought to himself as he parried another few slashes. Zexion doesn't seem to be very interested in supporting our efforts, but rather protecting those two. It looks like I'll have to take matters into my own hands.
Lexaeus was not pleased to have to resort to such a thing. Abandoning defense against someone like Xemnas was not a wise decision, but it looked like there was no further choice. The burly man put a bit more force than necessary into his next swing, successfully knocking his Xemnas copy back by a good dozen feet. He then clenched his fist and focused his energy. A moment later, a huge burst of force erupted from his body, causing his Xemnas to fly back a little more at the unexpected pressure, and also causing the other combatants in the room to lose their footing somewhat, despite their relative distance. Zexion summoned his Lexicon and used it to brace himself and Kairi against the force, keeping them and Sora on their collective feet.
When the wind had died down, Lexaeus was glowing with a wide, orange aura, crackling with energy. He then roared loudly as he slammed his weapon down upon the ground, causing several jagged pieces of rock to erupt forth in a column at Xemnas.
Xemnas responded by generating another barrier in front of him, blocking the bulk of the technique, but still feeling the shockwave as bits of debris hit him. Lexaeus did not let up his assault as he tossed his weapon into the air, stomping on the ground with his right, then his left foot, each stomp causing further ruptures in the ground. As his Axe Sword came falling back down, he spun and caught it mid-descent and brought it down again for a final crushing blow, an upheaval of earth and stone launching out of the ground at the off-guard Xemnas.
Marluxia noted, quite happily, that these chunks of earth were laden with roots and seeds – he could sense it from afar. He vanished in a flurry of petals, reappearing a few feet behind Xemnas as he waved his hand forward. Several vines fired out from the masses of land Lexaeus had brought forth, compelled into full growth by the Assassin's power. They moved with alarming speed, seeking to ensnare the former Superior, their lengths dotted with poisonous thorns. Xemnas shot out several lasers to slice through these vines, but soon found himself standing on a portal of poisonous energy, more vines emerging from beneath him until he was surrounded in a cage of them. Marluxia closed his eyes with a serene grin and snapped his fingers, detonating the cage and its inhabitant.
The Xemnas whom had been dealing with Demyx and Axel seemed to abandon them, flying overhead toward Lexaeus. Lexaeus's own Xemnas was hovering overhead now as well, looking a bit beaten and worse for wear. The two took opposite sides floating above the Silent Hero, aimed their hands at him, and proceeded to fire a rapid barrage of lasers. Lexaeus was able to deflect one of the streams with his blade, but his flank was left exposed, taking the full impact of the attacks. He grunted and released more of his aura as a counterattack, knocking the attacking clones away from him.
One of the clones careened through the air, taking more of the aura attack, and righted itself soon after, prepared to reengage with an irritated expression. However, his expression quickly changed to one of shock and unexpected pain. Looking down, he could see a circular weapon of red and silver jutting out of his chest. Probably not the best call in judgment to stop paying attention to his other targets. He had only a moment to curse this poor decision before the weapon burst into flames, consuming his artificial body in them for a moment, which faded away moments later.
Axel caught his bladed wheel as it fell back to him, smirking. "Never take your eyes off me. Keep that memorized."
Demyx coughed and narrowed his eyes slightly at the catchphrase.
The only remaining clone was soon involved in a war of slashes with Marluxia, who had come to Lexaeus's aid in getting rid of it. This one was much easier to keep up with, considering its prior damage at the Hero's hands. Lexaeus watched them from the ground as he began to pull his aura back in. Crushing attack power was wonderful, but it could certainly take its toll – the damage he sustained was much more severe than normal due to his body's exertion. This much was evidenced in the wound he could feel on his back from the barrage of lasers he endured; he was quite sure there was a hole in him, and that he was bleeding rather profusely from it.
While all of this had been going on, the original Xemnas was still engaged with Roxas, both of them dealing with quite a bit of crossfire between the other clones and Roxas's own teammates. Roxas was crouched in a defensive stance, both Keyblade tips touching the floor as he took in some deep breaths. He was growing exhausted, and had several rips in his clothing and bruises on his body to show for it. Xemnas, meanwhile, was still in relatively good condition, having only sustained a few blows here and there. Roxas had to guess he was more powerful than his clones were.
Xemnas sighed in mild irritation as he saw, some ways away, his final clone decapitated by a well-timed warp movement from Marluxia. Dismissing his weapons, he began to float, rising above Roxas and the others and looking down upon them with distaste. Something clicked in Roxas's memory just then as he watched Xemnas bring his arms wide.
The entire room darkened to nearly pitch black. But the darkness did not last. It was soon dotted by thousands upon thousands of ominous, red projectiles, all poised to strike the group of individuals trapped within this dome of destruction.
Xemnas uttered but a single word. "Perish."
Emerald ~ Dream ~ Gammy
Saïx was dealing with a bit of a problem. He certainly didn't want to kill Naminé, but with each passing moment it was getting more and more difficult not to. The Witch was making a rather incessant nuisance of herself with all of that damn magic, and all of Saïx's attempts at reasoning with her had consistently failed. Whatever shit Xemnas had pulled on her was pretty much not changing any time soon.
The problem was in figuring out what to do now. He was sure he had done the right thing in leading the girl away from the fight and saving his comrades the stress of dealing with her, but now that it was just the two of them, and she was obviously not going to be roused from her current state with words, Saïx really had no clue what to do with her. It was becoming increasingly bothersome dodging, blocking, or weathering her spells, and he didn't want to strike back due to the knowledge that whatever he did would probably end up killing her. He could probably just knock her out if he could get close enough to punch her, but he could not, unfortunately, breech that distance. Her black magic simply grew more and more intense the closer he got to her, as if sensing his intent.
Saïx may have been one of Roxas's Homie Gee 360s, and he certainly had little against Naminé – no more than he had against anyone else – but he wasn't about to lay down his life in sacrifice if things got out of hand. If Naminé became too big of a threat, he was going to have to take her down.
"I see that you're having some trouble. Maybe I can assist you?"
Saïx knew that voice. He took a moment to turn his eyes away from Naminé, who was standing poised for attack with her damn book open, and glanced behind him. Sure enough, loping down the hall at a leisurely pace was Zero, hands in his pockets (his cloak had pockets? Saïx was wicked jealous) and carefree smile in place.
"What are you doing here?" Saïx asked icily. Naminé took advantage of his perceived distraction to launch a parade of black flames from her hands, her Heathen Tome hovering wide open in front of her. Saïx quickly danced around the flames, Zero following suit behind him.
The enigma chose to ignore Saïx's question as he resumed his approach, eyes on Naminé. "You don't have what it takes to free this girl. You lack any abilities pertaining to the mind, soul, or Darkness. It's beyond you."
"And I'm assuming that you mean to imply it is not beyond you?" Saïx replied, keeping his eyes trained on the man carefully while also watching Naminé, who seemed to also be observing Zero, in a vacant, sort of mind-controly way.
"It is perfectly within the scope of my abilities, yes."
"And you wish to 'help'. What sort of game are you playing?"
Zero took on a look of mock hurt as he raised one hand dramatically to his chest. "Why Saïx, I'm hurt! Can't I just do something nice?" Saïx rolled his eyes at the display. Zero laughed to himself as he dropped the obvious façade. "It doesn't matter what I want out of it. I'm graciously offering my help. You should be thanking me."
"I don't want your help. Begone."
"Oh, shut up." Zero replied. He then rushed forward, darting past Saïx as he made a rapid beeline for Naminé. The girl reacted quickly, her tome glowing as an accursed black energy was launched in wisps at Zero. The man cackled as he fazed through the attacks and closed the distance between himself and the Witch. His arm launched forward and his palm was placed firmly over the girl's face.
Naminé's posture went rigid at the contact, her tome falling to the floor with a resounding thump. After a moment, her figure went limp, falling into a gentle embrace from Zero, who looked down upon her now unconscious face with appreciation. He then turned to look at Saïx smugly for a moment before bringing Naminé into a dip, in imitation of a ballroom dance, and pressed his lips against hers.
Saïx watched the display with surprise for a moment before he growled lowly and surged forward, swinging his Claymore horizontally at Zero's head. He arrived too late, however, as the pair was gone to the folds of Darkness before his weapon could make contact. He was seething at his inability to act, his teeth grit harshly against each other.
The Tome was also gone.
Menale Fiti
Damn it, damn it, damn it…
Roxas was in tatters. The group had not weathered that attack very well. Roxas had moved to defend the fallen bodies of Xigbar and Xaldin as best he could, with less than fully successful results. Lexaeus was unable to completely prevent the majority of the attack from making contact with him, lacking any light or darkness with which to repel the bolts of Nothingness. Marluxia had been taken completely off-guard by the assault, and Axel and Demyx were in too poor shape to block it with any degree of success either, weather they had been expecting it or not.
One speck of silver lining was that Zexion had absorbed Kairi and Sora into his Lexicon at the last second and had then proceeded to vanish himself. Man, the guy was an asshole. But at least Roxas could be grateful for his saving the hapless duo.
All around Roxas he could see his friends beaten down and in no condition to fight any more. Demyx and Axel were both on the ground now, still breathing but not moving. Behind him, Xigbar and Xaldin were still alive by his check, but had sustained even more injuries. They were also totally unconscious now as well, assuming they had even retained any consciousness of the battle since their check-out. Marluxia was slumped against a wall, still partially standing and trying to keep it together. And Lexaeus, for all his strength, was leaning heavily on his Axe Sword, taking heavy breaths and looking scarred all over.
Roxas took in his surroundings uneasily, looking for Xemnas. How in the hell they expected to beat him in their condition was beyond him, but he should at least be accounted for.
He found Xemnas just as he turned to look in Lexaeus's direction. There he was, standing right behind the Silent Hero. And in the next moment, two glowing red blades were sticking through Lexaeus's chest. His eyes widened and his giant weapon was dropped, clanging onto the floor. All conscious eyes stared in transfixed horror as they watched what were surely Lexaeus's final moments. He did not scream, or groan, or indicate pain any more than his eyes conveyed. He simply stood, as if waiting for the end. But then, unexpectedly, he reached one massive palm behind him and grabbed a hold of Xemnas's right arm, one of the very arms holding the blades of his demise inside of him.
An actual look of dismay could be seen on Xemnas's face as the powerful hand clamped around his wrist and squeezed and twisted. A loud crack was heard throughout the nearly empty, mostly destroyed room and the blades vanished from Lexaeus's body as the sudden pain of crushed bones made Xemnas lose his grip on them. Lexaeus then finally uttered one great, roaring sound as he swung his arm, still holding Xemnas by his destroyed wrist and flung the man across the room, his body smacking hard into the far wall with another loud crack.
And then, silent once more, Lexaeus fell to his knees and took his last breath, his eyes closing as he slumped forward onto the ground. The great, immovable pillar of strength that was Lexaeus had at last fallen.
Roxas screamed, and in a sudden burst of adrenaline, he charged as fast as his legs would carry him over to Xemnas, Keyblades burning with the rage of light. Xemnas was getting to his feet just in time to partially guard the strike, summoning a blade with his only good hand and clumsily parrying the attack, trying to put distance between himself and the boy. But Roxas would not let up as hot tears ran down his cheeks, his weapons swinging quickly and powerfully with uncapped fury and hatred. Lexaeus had been like a father to him, always there to dispense advice and guidance when he needed it. Though it had been Xaldin's suggestion that he date Naminé, Lexaeus had been there to silently nod at Roxas (while reading the newspaper), assuring him that it was good advice and not just drunken rambling.
Xemnas was finding himself quickly overwhelmed, the lack of a second blade causing an unbalance to the style he knew, in addition to the size of just one of his weapons being insufficient in completely protecting himself from the wrath of the Keyblades. In a last ditch effort to protect himself, he abandoned his blade and used his only good arm to create another barrier of Nothingness. The tactic worked, knocking the boy backwards and away, temporarily halting his relentless assault. Working quickly, Xemnas summoned two clones – both severely weakened due to lack of energy, as well as possessing one gimp arm each, but clones none the less. The two of them quickly rushed forward, each one taking hold of one of Roxas's arms and raising him up into the air.
The Keybearer struggled and kicked at their grips, but they would not relent. The true Xemnas flew up in front of him, and with hatred in his eyes, placed his hand firmly over the boy's chest. The four bodies went aglow with crackling, white energy, and much to his horror, Roxas could feel the life within him slipping away. What is this…
"The power of your heart shall soon be mine, Key of Destiny."
Roxas struggled in vain against the draining energy as he gasped out. "M-my… heart…?"
"Certainly a unique occurrence, for a Nobody to possess one. You can hardly even be called a Nobody, solely by that virtue. But it matters not. I will remedy this joke of fate, and you will cease to be." Xemnas explained through calmed anger, his smile back on his face.
The world was starting to fade around Roxas. He could feel himself slipping away. And then all at once, the draining sensation was gone, replaced with a more… fall-y sensation. Roxas felt himself land in a pair of what he guessed were arms, and tried to open his eyes to the blurry light. His vision soon solidified, and he was looking up at Marluxia, who was looking him over with concern.
Upon seeing that he was alright, he smiled, and Roxas swore he felt some fondling. He quickly got out of the man's arms. "I can stand, thanks. What happened?" he asked, but rather than wait for an answer, he looked up to find Xemnas, clutching his head and uttering low, guttural sounds. His clones had vanished.
Confused, Roxas looked around until he suddenly spotted Naminé, apparently having just arrived in the room and still adorned in that silly witch outfit. Her hand was outstretched and her eyes were closed.
"Roxas! I've got him held down!"
"How?" Roxas called back.
"Is this really the time to be asking how, numbnuts! Take him out, now!"
"Psh, fuck that, I'll take him out." A familiar, bitchy voice called from the shadows as Larxene suddenly appeared, warping behind Xemnas and wasting no time in driving a knife right into the back of his neck. She then released a surge of electricity, flooding his body with lightning, the base of his neck as the focal point for its spread.
After a moment, the electrification stopped, and Xemnas fell from the air, landing in a heap on the floor. He appeared to be breathing, but barely. Naminé ran across the room and threw her arms around Roxas, saying all kinds of things like how much she missed him and how she felt like a princess and other bullshit. Larxene landed nearby and looked Xemnas's body over. He spoke.
"Defeated… by the Savage… and the Witch. Unbelievable…"
Larxene smirked as she walked over and kicked him, knocking him onto his back, and then drove a heel into his stomach for good measure. "Better start believing, because it just happened, bitch."
However, rather than the last words of a foiled villain, Xemnas merely smiled. A genuine smile, at that. "Thank you. You have rid the worlds of the influence of that corrupt, evil man. No longer will his darkness permeate the lives of the innocent. Again, I… thank you."
Larxene had a pretty 'what the fuck' look on her face. But Xemnas merely continued to smile as his body faded away into the Nothingness he so desired. "Well that was weird."
Roxas nodded, a tad mystified by it. But then he remembered his friends. And Lexaeus.
It had taken some doing, but Naminé had managed to heal some of the wounds of the group, bringing them away from death's door, but for the most part everyone was still rather banged up. She had apologized for not being able to do more, but she seemed to have lost her Heathen Tome, a fact she was very upset about, and couldn't do any better without it.
And so, with sadness, respect, or both in their eyes, the damaged collection of warriors gathered around Lexaeus's body, which had only just begun to fade, disappearing in small wisps. It was rather like a funeral procession, everyone silent, their eyes downcast. Roxas's fist was gripped tightly enough to draw a small amount of blood. Naminé grabbed his other hand and squeezed softly, reassuringly. Demyx was sniffling and crying openly, clutching the hems of his robes as a sort of handkerchief. Axel looked down with half-lidded eyes, shaking his head softly. Xaldin watched with stony silence, his Dreadlocks all shedding water which was assumed to be tears. He even knelt down and placed his Pimp cane next to Lexaeus ("For the trip to the afterworld, old sport."). Xigbar, his shoulder holes now healed, stared down with a similar expression to Xaldin's, unspoken respect for his colleague and old friend communicated through that one good eye of his. Always a bit uptight, but none the less, Lexaeus had been a pretty cool dude. Marluxia laid several roses all around Lexaeus, watching him go with a frown ("That attempted assassination we pulled on Xemnas was almost the best collaboration ever. Until he moved and then killed you later."). Even Larxene nodded her chin up once, which was about as respectful a gesture as you were going to get from her.
When his body had finally vanished, somehow taking Xaldin's Pimp Cane with it, the small circle of people broke apart.
"That's one guy down." Xigbar announced. "But we still have another big fish to fry. We've got cards to find, guys, and we've got to be quick about it."
There was a silent murmur of agreement.
"So am I the only one wondering when Marly got here? And where the hell did Sora and Kairi go? And Naminé, you never did answer how you did that shit to Xemnas." Larxene spoke up loudly.
Naminé frowned. "I used the same thing on him as he made me use on Sora and Roxas. By working to control me, he made a connection, and I was able to use that connection against him. But that was the last of my active Heathen Spells… I don't know where Saïx is, but I have vague recollections that he was with me before I came to. I woke up in one of the halls around here a little bit ago, and I could remember most of what had happened and what I had done, but not how I got there. I found you guys and just did what I could."
"So you don't know where Saïx went?" Roxas asked, concerned.
"No… and I don't know where Sora and Kairi are either. But since I'm back to normal, Sora should be fine now, wherever he is."
"I'm right here!" Sora called, surprising everyone as he ran up to them with Kairi close behind him. "We were with Zexion! He got me and Kairi away from the battle when it became too dangerous, because I was kinda brain-dead and she was protecting me."
"Although I kind of wonder why he didn't just help Sora the same way he helped Roxas." Kairi added, seeming pretty pissed about it. "Anyway, he sent us back here, saying he had work to do. Asshole. So how are things guys, I guess we beat Xemnas?"
"Yeah! Man that sucks. I wish I coulda helped." Sora said, smiling at them all. He was met only with grim expressions. "Geez guys, who died?"
Larxene laughed.
Sora and Kairi were soon thereafter filled in on Lexaeus's death, as well as the other things they had missed. Sora bawled for an entire hour while the group searched the halls for Saïx. They found him eventually, wandering around, kind of lost. They then informed him of Lexaeus's death as well. Sora bawled for another hour.
"That is… unfortunate. It's a great loss." Saïx admitted over Sora's noise, shaking his head. "But at least you all are well."
"Psh, like you care." Larxene retorted. "You're pretty much cold to everyone, and I doubt you actually give a damn. I mean, I don't, and you were pretty much Xemnas's lapdog."
"SHUT THE FUCK UP LARXENE!" Naminé shouted angrily.
Larxene just smiled slyly.
"God!" Naminé continued. "I can't believe you can say that! I mean, what the hell even made you come back and help in the first place!"
Larxene shrugged. "A magical disembodied voice told me to."
Everyone kinda went silent at that. It was not like Larxene to say that sort of thing with a straight face.
"No really, that happened. She even gave me an Apple Custard Pie. It was fucking amazing. Better than CHICKUN and Delicious Steak put together."
"Wow." Sora admitted, ceasing his bawling.
"Yeah." Larxene replied. "Wow."
"Alright, so guys." Xigbar spoke up. "This is all very interesting, but we do need to get the hell out of here and look for cards. We've got the 00 and the 08, but that's pretty much it."
"Uhm, actually," Marluxia interrupted, smirking. "While you guys have been off doing who knows what, I found the 03, the 11, and the 10."
Xigbar raised his eyebrow. "Seriously? That's awesome. How did you manage that? You kind of wandered off before we could give you a radar."
"Honestly? I have no clue. Just kinda followed the ol' intuition and yeah. Found 'em." Marluxious had clearly reverted back to being regular Marluxia at this point, as he was applying makeup and talking with an effeminate pitch.
"Huh. Weird, but okay. So I guess that just leaves nine more. Alright."
It was commonly agreed upon that this was alright, as Xigbar had stated. Now that Xemnas was finally gone, they could focus on their remaining adversary – the enigma called Zero.
Most were still rather unnerved by his existence, and Naminé was especially uncomfortable (and Roxas enraged) when Saïx described to them all the nature of her apparent rescue.
But there would be time to investigate, and time to discuss, later. For now, the group simply focused on getting out of the Castle, and finding some time to rest off their wounds.
And yet…
Zexion stood on the shores of the Dark Meridian, staring out at the black, lapping waters. In his hand, he held a black card, the very same card Xemnas had given to him. He lifted the object, staring at it with interested scrutiny. Xemnas's face stared back from the card's front.
"I suppose it's time then." Zexion spoke to no one in particular. "Time for the final page to be turned."
And then he squeezed. The card emitted a black aura that flowed outward, surrounding Zexion. He then placed the card into the center of his chest. It slowly seeped through his cloak, through skin and bone, right into his soul, where it met with his soul card. And then a burst of darkness erupted from his body, shooting into the dark skies in a large pillar, twisting and turning and writhing with a darkness deeper than the Meridian's shores.
And then the darkness faded, and Zexion was standing once again. But not quite Zexion. His skin was a noticeably darker pallor. His hair had turned a grey-silver color, and while retaining the same overall style, was much more jagged and messy. His face seemed to have a slightly longer, angular shape than it had before. He had perhaps even grown a few inches taller. And his eyes, his eyes were aglow with a bright, burning, golden color. He looked at the sky.
"This world is not large enough for us."