Disclaimer: I don't own anything I've stolen from including Kingdom Hearts and several other stories and/or franchises. Yeah, I'm not creative enough to write something of my own. So This is to be in no way construed as claiming characters, lines, thoughts, or any other conceivable commodity of another as my own. Yeah, I'm in the clear. I guess.
My apologies: Though I spent days on editing it I'm sure I've still left droves of typos, inconsistencies and grammatical errors that my stupid word processor won't help me fix. So, I'm sorry about that in advance.
Forethoughts: There's only two more chapters left. I should have edited content a little more but I guess this is okay as it is now. I'm still debating on whether to make a final re:edit on this.
6th Act
Nothing happened. They had lost, but they were not killed or injured. X just stopped and walked away without a word. The heroes of the light were left to their own thoughts, for the time being.
"What just happened?" Sora asked scratching his head, utterly perplexed.
"He found the answer." Riku replied confidently. "Sometimes fighting someone can show you a lot about yourself."
"No. I don't think so, I think he found something better." Mickey said looking off into the distance with a heartened smile.
-
"That's impossible!"
"What's impossible?"
"How could he fail? All that work all that planning and he quits once he's won."
"Um, sir I told you this would happen if he was sent against the hero. He had no reason to do it and that was enough for him not to."
"What about Seagle's mission?"
"I found some of his secret reports. That was the mission, he's on his way to finish the job now. Would you like to relocate?"
"No, let him come, there's no way he'll be able get past the first floor."
"Let me remind you he was able to kill two Superiors, a highly dangerous experiment, and our top hitter."
"I don't care he will break and I'll prevail."
"Don't you mean we?"
"That's right, I'll commune with the rest of the top brass and we'll set a course of events."
"Great, any further orders?"
"You'll receive them later, and one more thing, never come to me directly."
"I had to, Nose Rag had a bit of a tumble and is indisposed."
"I'll let it go. But let's hope this will be he last time."
"Yes, sir."
-
"Professor? Are you there?"
"Yes, what is it?"
"I need the prototypes to mobilize along with the betas and completed units."
"Why?"
"Just as you said, he made it."
"So the hero is dead?"
"No."
"Then why?"
"The only one who might know is Seagle."
"Great. I don't have to remind you that they are highly unstable and each could easily turn on us?"
"That's right. Just lock them in the cursed zones until he arrives, they'll work things out."
"Yes, ma'am."
"Oh yeah, you should clear out of here, things could get ugly."
"I appreciate your concern, but it is hardly necessary."
"I've my own plans as I'm sure you do. Seagle was the thing holding up this organization, without him the end will come sooner or later. But why am I telling you?"
"I understand. I wish you well, and with that I bid you adieu."
"Yep. That's all we can do at this point."
-
"I guess this is it." X looked out over a dark turbulent sea. Or rather a large moat that acted like a sea. In the midst of the crashing waves lay a castle. It seemed to have been made from blown glass, this was definitely Castle of Obsidian, central command for all experimental units and overseer of the dark plane. X looked at the massive span that separated him from the castle. The moat seemed to have been carved straight into the floor. No mean feat to be certain, but crossing it would be no less of a task.
X drew his sword and concentrated all his strength into the blade. A second later the sword flashed forwards at the castle. Such was the air force expelled that the sea began to calm. The two violent forces had met and the sea had lost. X then proceeded to walk atop the now calm tides. Actually it was less walking than riding. He skimmed the surface of the water as easily as if he were weightless. Without additional issue he reached the castle and stood at the entrance thinking of how to best pull this thing off. He was cut off by a nagging thought in the back of his head.
"That's right isn't it. I have to do this my own way." X rushed forwards into the door causing it to burst open. The entrance hall looked like a giant wasps nest full of unseen exits and hallways. Though this was strange it was by far the most passive thing about the room. It wasn't by any means empty the walls and floors and quite possibly ceiling were covered in Heartless. X wasn't surprised that the enemy would go for numbers when quality had failed.
X drew his sword and there was a brilliant flash of light. Not one moment later the Heartless began to drop and fade with small flame shapes inscribed on them. X easily passed through the hall and moved into the next major adjoining room. This time he wasn't met with beasts he was met with an affront to nature. There stood a large creature. It's body seemed to be ready to fall apart and fade into darkness. But still it stood thee a massive black and white monolith. X realized what it was from the time he saw it.
It wasn't a Heartless like the others but nor was it a Nobody like himself. It was some kind of hybrid from an evil brood. X examined it's patchwork frame an assumed it to be just a grunt or a flawed creation. It sniffed the air and seemed repulsed when it realized X stood before it. It angrily charged forwards trying to kill him. X slashed through it in a single movement and watched it quickly decompose into it's separate parts.
"That was wrong. Low, even for that madman." X thought to himself as he looked at the next set of doors. One led up one led down and one led straight forwards. "Where to go?" X decided that the leader would be at the top and he would not need to worry about him trying to escape, so down was the logical choice.
"I think I'd hate basements if I could feel." X thought to himself as he opened the down marked door and descended quickly. He soon reached the next door and he opened it slowly. The room wasn't like the glassy upper floors it was carved straight out of the stone. The style also went for a more minimalist look. There was just this door he came through and a staircase to go down to the next floor.
Just as before he saw the Heartless Nobody fusion. This time it looked cleaner and the design looked deliberate. He took caution dealing with this one as it obviously had developed more than just the most rudimentary of senses. It's half developed eyes had the faint glow reminiscent of the characteristic yellow Heartless eyes. It's body was entirely black with zippers and glowing vein like structures running across it's body. It didn't seem to be able to see or hear well but that was obviously enough for it to be connected with it's surroundings.
X drew his sword slowly testing it's senses, his predictions were spot on. He decided to test it further and feinted an attack. It instantly jumped at him. He quickly evaded the mad rush and struck back. However this one had a much tougher hide than the first one so his blow glanced off without leaving any major damage. He reset just in enough time to react to it's second assault. It ran once more but, X span around and thrust his sword straight into the beasts forehead as it passed next to him. It still tried to keep running even after it's body began to break down into nothingness.
But, before it reached the end of he room it was gone, erased, as all others in this place must be. X turned towards the descending spiral stair case at the other side of the room and quickly ran down it somehow feeling this sense of urgency. It wasn't worry or concern it was just this thing he didn't quite understand until he had seen the heroes fight him. He was cut off in his thoughts as he entered the next level.
The same thing as before happened except this time the beast not only had all five senses but it seemed almost capable of higher brain function, not quite thought, but more than just instinct and pure emotion. He easily killed this beast just as he had before. Each level he passed was the same as before progressively more complete prototypes of the beasts would stand in the middle of each room waiting to be destroyed.
X was still far beyond any of these creatures, but he began to consider the possibility of a beast that had been perfected. One that he couldn't beat. He shook the thoughts from his head as it was apparent that they had expected him to come this way and they wanted him to see the intelligent progression of the subsequent creatures. After some time and countless floors had past X he arrived at the bottom. It was just that a dead end room no way out except the way you'd come.
X knew this'd how it'd be a trap at the bottom of the world, not just the door closing and in all likelihood locking behind him, not just the pale lights going out not just the glow of the beasts but the high pitched cackle that resonated throughout the room and for all he knew throughout the castle.
That's what made things bad, each vibration seemed to shake X to his core. He felt like he was being searched in and out and being torn apart to do so. It was a horrible feeling, almost as bad as he remembered Allen's fear. X felt his mind get searched he couldn't think, he couldn't feel, but whatever it was that he sensed somehow was wrong. Soon he collapsed from mental breakdown, he had nothing now, no thoughts, no ideas, no way out.
X was in sorry shape, physically there was no one to match him but without the mind to direct his power it would be nothing to kill him. But that's where the mistake was made, he wasn't killed, he wasn't even assaulted, he was left to stagnate and decay. But he wasn't ready for that no he would never be ready for that. He struggled outside himself willing himself to move, but he had been severed from the body he once inhabited. Just then he remembered what Seagle had told Allen everyday of his training.
"Don't think about everything, you'll end up a sitting duck and then you'll die. So don't try it, do it." X lifted his head and raised himself to an upright stance. He drew his sword, but it felt different, not the cold steel he found so fitting but a warm almost fluid feel that made him look down. It was basically useless, seeing as there was no light save for the now brightly glowing pair of eyes not two meters distant. He knew something now and that was all he knew, he wouldn't die here.
X leapt through the air and quickly impaled the head of the beast before proceeding to the handler. X somehow could sort of feel everything, his normal senses seemed to have been shut off and now he was moving based on that feeling he would get whenever his body was ready to die. His sword found it's way through the chest of someone. X couldn't see who but they were finished that's all that mattered. X began to walk away as the lights revived and showed a man lying on the floor slowly losing himself.
"Wait a second." The man said weakly.
"What is it?" X asked without turning about.
"I have something to tell you." X walked over and looked at the man and saw his pale face that had obviously never seen light beyond the dim artificial ones that lit the cavernous hall. His eyes were pale gray and he seemed to be blind. He shook his head and smiled, his gaunt features stretching into an almost eerie grin. His hair was the same as his eyes and he seemed young in spite of all this he must have been the same age as Allen when he died.
"What is it." X softened his tone and tried to make himself seem sincere.
"I'm a nothing, but you still destroyed me. I think that you're no Nobody there is something more to you and I wish I could bask in you're excellence a little bit longer." The man was slowly fading.
"I don't understand, what do you mean?" X was genuinely interested at this point.
"Heh heh. I think you'll understand later. I know you'll make it 'til later, I just wonder how you'll make it." The man seemed happy in spite of his claim of being a Nobody.
"Alright then, rest in peace." X tried to put this as easily as he could just so the man could die with some dignity.
"Nobodies don't rest! I'll see you when you come to join me. I'll be waiting." X wasn't sure how to take the mans ravings. However he let him die in the presence of the one he'd once found so wonderful. Soon after the man died X moved back up to the top of the stairs and sealed the door. X wasn't sure how he did this, but it didn't matter at this point.
"One down two to go." X thought to himself as he looked at the other two doors.
-
"Well, he's shown his face after all these years just to have himself killed by the very thing he was trying to escape when he left."
"Ironic, isn't it."
"Actually it follows the script quite well. I was beginning to doubt old Gorge."
"Really."
"I wish I could show you the wonders of the script, but it is too dangerous to be let out of this room. As I have just now proved"
"Yes sir."
"Ah yes one more thing Styx. Why don't you go over and tell Aurelia to assemble the counterstrike in the main hall this is going to be one hell of a fight."
"I only wish I could share your certainty and enthusiasm."
"Oh well, I guess you should prepare the defenses here, he'll be coming soon enough."
"Yes, sir."
"Oh just drop the sir, tonight we end this nightmare and this will be no more than a far off memory. Think eternal glory and power."
"Alright."
"Anything else?"
"One thing only. I still can't help but think that he caused his death on purpose. One with that power couldn't possibly be taken so easily."
"Don't worry either way he'll come into our hands and remember what we've always said."
"I remember. First we attack his heart."
-
X heard something from the middle door that was marked as going straight.
"Guess the old bastard is hiding topside." X said aloud as if to tell the castle he knew exactly what was happening. He made straight for the middle door to clear all possible enemies that could sneak up on him when he went after the Top Brass member in charge of this carnival. X slowly pushed open the door revealing an unsettlingly dark tunnel with a small speck of bright light at the end. X proceeded cautiously, as he was trapped between the door he heard close behind him as he entered and the possible legions that lay ahead.
He quickened his pace as not to let his eyes adjust to the dark. It would be disadvantageous to walk into any situation blinded and something told him he'd need every advantage he could get. X entered a colossal arena filled with bright lights and a roar from what he presumed to be an audience. The arena was far to big to fit in the castle and yet there he stood. He scanned the area quickly to get a better perspective and he was alone. In the sense that there was no one on the ground ready to kill him. Not for much longer he suspected but for the time he was in a safer position.
"Hello, and welcome to the eternal combat arena!" Some announcer type voice shouted out. If the crowd was loud before this was deafening to be sure. "Our next battler hailing from this very castle for your entertainment-"
"You!" X shouted in a suddenly immeasurably loud voice as he pointed his blade at a man not more than ten stories up. "Shut up and get this over with." X lowered his voice in response to the now silent crowd.
"Oh it looks like this one is going to give the sentinels a work out." The man continued. He was a tall rather weaselly man with slicked back black hair that tried with all it's might to stand up, only half achieving this goal. He stood slouched over a microphone with a joyous grin upon his lips. He looked like the type who although was a strong man at one time had abandoned his self dignity to move up in a corporate setting.
"X, aren't you the least bit impressed by this?" He waved his hand around at the arena and X stared at him. "Well it was no mean feat creating these dimensional rifts that allow us to shift wasted space from one part of the castle to this room here." X still just stared.
"Guess this one's not much of a talker folks, I think we should just let him have his final words and get this over with." The man chuckled and signaled something. Gates from the walls opened and out poured a veritable flood of the horrible beasts X had seen in the basement. X sighed and lifted his sword and suddenly there was a shout.
"X! Get out of here there's no way you'll survive!" It was a woman no one knew where but they all knew who it must have been.
"That witch! I'll deal with her myself." The man raged to himself leaving the balcony from which he watched. Tossing aside his microphone.
"Don't worry, I haven't chosen to die." X muttered to himself. He shook his other hand out behind him and another sword appeared. The exact equal to his other except this one was as deep a crimson as blood and in the stead of a flame style it's base was shaped like a heart. He crossed his blades and they transformed into Duality, only one was sanguine red and the other oceanic blue.
He charged the enemy lines and cut a violent swath through the ranks without even taking a breath. Within seconds the once impossible odds got to be improbable and from there to two to one. The entire arena was quieted. No one could believe what they saw, it was… well, impossible, until about five seconds previously
-.
"Aurelia!" The announcer yelled after the woman in a narrow hallway.
"Yes, Styx." She replied politely turning to face him. She had nice wavy blonde hair about twice as long as X's and an undeniably pretty face. The stark contrast from her almost glowing appearance to the greasy unkempt hair and rat-like features of her opponent was amazing.
"Oh you finally decided to call me by my real name? Too bad for you it's too late to make it up to me. You've betrayed us and for that you'll die. I am so going to enjoy this." He smiled revealing brilliantly white teeth filed down into points. This only added to the rat theme.
"Yeah, I know." She said, subdued.
"I never thought you'd be one to take this lying down, not that I mind." he licked his deformed teeth and advanced dangerously.
"Don't be ridiculous. You fight me it's like a baby fighting a giant." She almost laughed at this.
"Why you!" He summoned a broad metal oar and charged. She leapt down the hall out of reach. Styx furiously rushed after her madly swinging his weapon smashing the walls to pieces.
-
X stood once more in an empty arena as the audience in awed silence. X breathed heavily and nearly collapsed from exhaustion. He'd never expect to get his heart to do something so helpful. Either way he stared thankfully down at his red blade and smiled. There was a crash heard from the upper stadium wall. X looked up and saw two people fighting in a windowed outcropping. X easily saw one of them was winning but who were they?
Suddenly one of them fell out of the window and the other looked down in victory. X didn't care if it was friend or foe he had to save them. He had no idea why he was compelled to do such a thing. Either way it was too late to stop, he was already in midair catching the falling individual. He looked at their face and it was a pretty blonde girl with wavy hair about twice as long as his. She almost seemed to glow with a warmth that X could only relate to memories of his own heart.
He looked back on his experiences with the red soul blade as he called it, no, the heart blade that was a better name, it had to be Allen, it couldn't be anything else; something just told him he was right to assume so. She wasn't unconscious but she was disoriented and surprised to end up staring into the face of the one she'd been ordered to kill what seemed like so many years ago.
"A- Wait…" She stopped midsentence seeing that her rescuer's hair was a grey black like ashes not oak brown like she remembered. "You must be X, pleased to meet you." She said getting up and brushing herself off.
"I assure you the pleasure is all yours." He replied trying to place where he remembered her from.
"Yo!" Styx called out as he leaped down from the ledge. He landed hard but it didn't seem to bother him.
"Styx, I thought that was you. As you can see those little experiments didn't kill me. What now?" X asked calmly.
"Now, I kill you! Those lab rats were to wear you down and she was supposed to finish you off! I guess she didn't have the heart!" Styx began to laugh hysterically at his own joke and suddenly he brought down his oar with as much force as he could muster. X pushed Aurelia away and blocked the attack.
"Where'd you get this power? The Styx I knew wasn't much stronger than an ant." X commented coolly even though he was easily being overpowered.
"I've had some work done. You like?" Styx lifted his weapon and brushed himself off then he lunged forwards. X spun off and counter attacked with one hand and guarded against the handle with the other. Styx parried, but X was ready for the second counter. He let himself roll off the powerful strikes without taking the full brunt of the force and avoiding most harm. X leapt away and stood there his heavy breathing returning all too soon. Styx charged with a gleeful grin painted across his ugly face.
"And here I thought you'd be tough." He mocked. X rolled out of the way and tried to get up and counter but he was just too worn out from the basement and the beasts. He sat there a sitting duck just waiting to be hit. He wasn't Styx had begun battle with Aurelia once again. She had retrieved her kwon dao and was doing a brilliant job of fending him off.
"A little help here, if you please!" She yelled over to X as he sat there like a puppet without strings.
"Fine." He thought to himself. He jumped off the ground over Aurelia's head and stabbed down at Styx. The sword impaled Styx through the head, at least that was the idea. Styx moved his head and torso back enough to evade the blow and as X landed behind him he swung his oar backwards pounding X's back and sending him at least ten meters away. While he was preoccupied she took a swing at him but he blocked and pushed her to the ground.
"Looks like you can beat us now." X chuckled weakly. He slowly rose to his shaking feet, not without a tremendous pain but it worked.
"That's kinda the point." Styx hurled his weapon javelin style at X who easily sidestepped it and attacked, but he was foiled when Styx brought back his weapon and thrust it into his gut happily grinning all the while.
"You know I've always been treated badly 'cause I was the only non-fighter in upper management, but now I think that I'll let that go if you beg and grovel as I had to for all those years. I'm in a giving mood so choose before you make me change my mind." He said playfully twirling his oar around like a pen.
"Oh shove it, no one'd ever beg you for anything." Aurelia laughed condescendingly as she jumped to her feet and readied for battle.
"Looks like the pretty girl goes first." He laughed a bit then swung his oar through the air unleashing a powerful blast or air at her. She was instantly forced back and fell backwards. X tried to get up but he was drained, he had nothing left to fight with.
"I hope your watching X! I'd hate for you to be deprived the pleasure of seeing this!" Styx was laughing hysterically by now as he smacked around his opponent gleefully. X tried again but he still couldn't move. No it still hurt to move, he could move fine.
"This is gonna hurt!" He yelled. Styx stupidly turned around to see X flying through the air brandishing his swords. Styx barely escaped decapitation, but he did. He backed up a few meters and saw Aurelia lying lifeless on the ground. Styx decided to take advantage of this and he threw her up as X charged in. X was blindsided by the unexpected maneuver and went down hard trying not to hurt his only ally. Styx rushed forward ready to plaster his enemies brains all over the stadium. But something caught his leg and he tripped. He fell over flat on his face and
"Stupid." X smirked at him falling over on the discarded dao.
"I'm gonna rip you apart!" He shrieked blinded with fury. He slammed the ground in an attempt to crush X, but he missed.
"This looks bad." Aurelia looked up at the fierce battle, then groaned and reached for her dao. She winced in pain, it didn't help that she'd probably shattered every bone in her body. But all the same she rose aided by her pole arm and watched the battle rage on. Styx missed every shot. He couldn't land anything, it wasn't so much he was forced to miss as he couldn't help but miss. X barely even had to move back, the enraged psychopath was barely even trying to adjust his aim, he just kept on swinging wildly. X's sword flashed forwards and Styx stopped dead. He dropped to his knees with the red blade imbedded in his upper chest. X pulled it out and wiped the blade on his sleeve before dismissing his blood red arm.
"Heh." Was all the smiling Styx got out before he slumped over and died. X looked over at Aurelia and looked back down at Styx.
"Thanks." He remarked as he kicked the body to be sure it was dead.
"Your welcome, I always hated the little Nose Rag." she replied casually.
"I really have to get going I don't know how much time I have 'til the admin here wants to leave so I don't have time to waste here." X began his painful walk out of the now roaring stadium.
"Wait! I have to tell you something." Aurelia got up and followed him to where he'd stopped.
"What is it?" He asked wearily.
"The administrator is a top brass member and he isn't leaving. He's very confident with his position here. The Professor is also here, in the upstairs lab. One more thing, the administrator has the script." She said as quickly as her broken ribs would allow.
"Really? I guess I'd better be careful then. Then, perhaps you shouldn't be here, this is going to be bad and I don't see you as the self sacrificial type either." X commented as he slowly walked away.
"Stop it. I know you remember him, but that's no reason to hate me, you couldn't possibly understand what happened." She was getting angry not the silly 'crying angry' but the 'I'd rip you head off if I could' angry.
"I don't hate anyone and nor do I want anyone to hate me. It's more I don't have the heart for it you know." X continued impassively.
"Stop right there!" She regretted it after her ribs made a distinct cracking noise.
"I have places to go people to see, sorry that you feel that way. If I get out of here why don't you look me up? Hm?" X was forced to limp and hobble but he still wasn't followed. When he was sure that he was going on alone he made to turn and said, "You've changed your hair."
After that he continued slowly through the tunnel back to the main hall. X opened the door and slumped against the wall nearest him.
"Great. I don't think I'd be any use in this condition." He looked at his grimy blood soaked clothes and felt his battered, weary body.
"Guess ten minutes won't hurt right?" He passed out with those thoughts in mind.
-
"This is bad." Aurelia had come across some very disconcerting news. Upon closer inspection the 'Styx' they fought was a replica made by the Professor. A person wouldn't dissolve into darkness the way it had. It could only be a fake.
"I never thought you'd go that way." She thought to herself standing up. The arena had recently disintegrated and there was only a room that filled the ordinate amount of space and no more. She assumed it was because X had left and all efforts should be focused on him.
"I guess it's time I leave. Not that I'd be any help to him, anyways." She turned and left through the large ornate door that led back to the entrance hall.
Note: I think I made the chapters a little too short in retrospect. Anyways, I forgot to mention it before, but in case no one noticed. Seagle was creating the illusion of Organization XIII members. So no one is confused on the matter of whether I kept them dead or not. The answer is, they're dead.