Many adventures have strange hubs or vessels.
The real difference is what they look like…
The meeting had been called off quickly when the Lower gave the announcement, and now they were outside Lexaeus's room, the site of the kidnapping. While the Superior and Saix were questioning the panicked Nobodies, the rest were simply waiting for something to happen. Like in the case of Larxene, the room was completely trashed, possibly moreso due to the fact that the assumed Heartless did not know of the presence of guards, but in this case there were no bloodstains on the walls, which was definitely a good sign. There was a slight sense of paranoia running through the whole group at the moment, and none of them wandered off from the entrance. After all, what if those creatures weren't just targeting the ones that came back? All of them might be on the hitlist. When Saix emerged from the closed door a few minutes later they all felt relieved. "Do you know what happened to him?" Roxas, being the youngest and most curious, was the first to speak.
"For the most part, everything is still being clarified. However, Superior wanted me to show you something in the lower parts of the castle." Saix, in his usual cold manner, didn't even look down at the boy, and instead continued onwards through the hall, obviously expecting them to follow.
Not wanting to disobey the Diviner, the rest followed, but Roxas trailed behind, stealing a few glances back at the door before it disappeared into the darkness. This was miserable for him; he had only just got the hang of everything in the Organization and then something else had to come up and ruin his sense of stability! Sometimes this was just too confusing to comprehend. He looked over at Zexion, who appeared to almost be clinging to Axel, and felt a sting of pity. Roxas knew all too well what it was like to have no memories and then be swept up into some crazy, grand plot without hardly any explanation of what was going on. He decided that one day he would help out the member that had once explained so much to him; it was the least he could do in return. A smug smile crossed his face, and he was feeling quite pleased with himself. Of course, this caught the attention of Xion, who was right next to him. "What are you up to now?"
"It's nothing," Roxas replied cheerfully, "I'm just thinking of good things." Indeed he was. Good plans of helping out those less fortunate, and making himself seem that much better in everyone else's eyes. Besides, Axel looked quite tired of the Schemer, and Roxas wouldn't want him to handle the burden alone. He had no idea where his sense of goodwill came from, considering half of the people he hung around with, but it was there and he was very proud of it.
"Okay." Xion was a bit suspicious of her friend, and worried that he might try the 'evil plot' trick with her, which was often his response when she asked him that question. When she first heard him answer that way, which was while they were sharing ice cream in Twilight Town, she had actually believed him due to her naiveté. However, she would never fall for that again.
As they continued their travels throughout the castle, something very odd started to happen. While they did pass many familiar rooms on the way to the lower floors, such as the computer area and the library, which Axel had to literally drag Zexion away from, some places just seemed to be foreign. In actuality, practically no one except for Xemnas and Saix were allowed down here on their own, so the whole feel of the places was new to everyone. It was dark, but not like the halls above. Instead of looking like a void, it actually seemed as if lights were turned off, and some very dim glow had replaced them. As they continued downward the style seemed to be getting more mechanical as well. Neon lights replaced natural illumination, and there were wires lying all over the place like monstrous, bloated snakes. Marluxia tripped over a couple of them, but otherwise there were few disturbances in their observant and silent journey. Eventually the presence of white walls disappeared, leaving only black, sleek slates, many of which were covered and choked by even more machinery. Saix only stopped them when they were in front of a large and smooth rectangular door, which was actually two pieces fitted together. "Before you enter, there will have to be a little bit of explaining about what you're going to see. Back during the early days of the Organization Xemnas and Vexen started a little pet project here, one that only the Lowers assisted in making. It was basically a last defense weapon, which would be a sort of fail-safe if the castle ever were to be destroyed. However, later on, when more members started to pour in, they turned it into a ship as well. I was let in on this project only after Vexen died, and by then it was cancelled. Luckily for us, it was confirmed to be operational and suitable for flight."
Saix then slid open a small box jutting out of a wall, which was revealed to be a security device. He pushed four of the buttons, and the door opened itself in the slow manner of neglected machines. Inside was a huge, hangar-like area, and in the middle of it…the ship. The Diviner smirked, and then walked inside. "This, my fellow Nobodies, is the Eternal Void." Everyone trailed behind him, trying to get a closer view of the ship. Marluxia, however, stayed outside, with his arms crossed in an insulted manner. Being a man of pride, he wasn't about to subject his ears to their expressions of awe while he would be forced to beg for a description.
Now, dear readers, I would like you to think of the World of Nothingness boss fight from the second game, and compare the dragonesque vessel to the one that the Nobodies are gawking at right now. The whole figure of the Eternal Void was very similar, except for the fact that it was missing the mace-like cylinders on the tail, and the cylindrical chambers on its sides. The head was of the same structure, except its exposed opening was now replaced by a black-tinted window, and there were no signs of blue or pink tints on it, just pure black-and white. It filled up almost the whole hangar-area, of which the description of gigantic would be an understatement. It's long, arm-like appendages were spread out flat, along with its wings, which lay neatly on top of them. The vessel was straight from the head to the end of the body, and the tail was curled in a manner that would prevent any scratches done to it by scraping against the wall. As they walked closer to it, the Eternal Void's great size only became more and more obvious. It could easily house all of them and more from the looks of it. However, Roxas was a bit confused as to why Saix was showing them the ship now. Were they going to fly it? "Saix…What is this ship for, anyway?"
Saix turned around, staring at the boy with quite the stern look. "We're going to use it, of course. Xemnas said he would specify things soon, but I believe it is for tracking down those vile impersonators." By impersonators, he meant the Heartless, of course. Those beasts would be in no way able to equal the power of Nobodies, and the fact that some resembled them was just disgusting.
This time Axel was the one with the question. "We can just use the Corridors for that. I mean, it wouldn't be hard to find them without using a magical dragon ship." His tone towards the end was rather sarcastic; he didn't think much of the vessel before him.
"Axel, I'm afraid you don't fully understand these Corridors you take for granted." Xaldin, on the other hand, was much more fascinated by the Eternal Void. He always had that sort of dragon-like feel to him, with his Dragoon Nobodies and all. "They can only lead you to places that you know, and even then they aren't fully reliable. If someone tried to find new worlds with them, they would likely be lost for a long time. All of those treats must have made you forgetful." He walked closer to the ship, giving Axel a light jab to the side as he went. Xaldin was definitely not known for his kindness, though there were rumors that seeing others in pain cheered him up.
"He's right, Axel." Saix, on the other hand, wasn't so harsh. However, that was probably due more to his coldness than anything else. "These monstrosities will probably have rooted themselves in places that we haven't found yet. Also, if we stay on the move it will be harder for them to find us." He looked around the hangar, apparently looking for Xemnas. After all, they needed him before anything could continue as planned.
"So…" Demyx was already at the vessel's sides, feeling the cold metal under his hands. "We're going to fly around in a giant dragon ship, leave the castle to the Lowers, and go on a wild goose chase for magical new worlds to fight our evil Heartless twins? Cool." The Nocturne was always one for making a serious situation sound humorous, so the other members mostly ignored his comments, as they usually did.
Finally, after what seemed like an eternity of gazing at the Leviathan, Xemnas appeared through a Corridor. He kept his usual, dignified composure, but he seemed a bit shaken. Saix walked up to him, expecting a repost on the questioning. However, the Superior, instead of giving an answer, asked a question instead. "Saix…Are Heartless able to speak coherently?"
"No, Superior." The Diviner examined him closely, his senses telling him that something was definitely wrong. "Heartless can form words, but other than that one, none have been reported to have actually speak in intelligent sentences."
"Then…there is something wrong here." Xemnas sighed, looking ever-so-slightly horrified, which translated to extreme expression of emotion in the minds of the other members. He never showed emotion, not even when it was needed, so why now? "The Lowers reported that before the creature made off with Lexaeus, it told them where it was going."
"Maybe they're lying." Saix looked over Xemnas, worry faintly creeping into his mind. "After all, they might be trying to catch attention."
"No, Lowers are always honest. They had the fear of punishment and their duty to serve loyally pounded into them a long time ago." Xemnas paused for a moment, considering the weight of the information. "If these Heartless really are as intelligent as they said, then we may be facing a greater foe than we could ever possibly imagine."
"Like what?" Both Xemnas and Saix turned around to see Marluxia, who was standing by the entrance. They hadn't even heard him come in, so his voice was unexpected. "It isn't like they would be able to form their own Organization."
"They could…" Roxas was staring outside the room, where it looked quite dark and threatening, even with the white bars of neon light illuminating the area. "I mean, it's just like someone only sees the Dusks, and then meets one of us. They would say that Nobodies aren't smart enough to form an Organization, but we have one right now."
"Expect the impossible…" Oddly enough, this comment came from Zexion, who was currently sitting on the head-like cockpit of the Eternal Void. All eyes turned to him, since they hadn't really expected the Schemer to be able to say anything coherent. He blushed a little when he was noticed, something that surprised them even more. "That is, to keep or hold our minds open, broad, or creative." He seemed to have finally kept himself from rambling on, though he was still repeating the same thing with different synonyms. Roxas gave an encouraging smile at the Schemer, and was glad that he wasn't acting so crazy.
Marluxia sighed, and admitted defeat. "Very well, there is a possibility. I give in. By the way, where did this 'Heartless' say he was going anyway?"
"Well…" Xemnas paused yet again, reluctant to tell them their destination. "We'll have to go to Wonderland."
This was met with groans and sighs from the rest of the members. That is, except for Luxord, who looked as if he were celebrating. You see, no one liked Wonderland due to the fact that it was confusing, insane, and just plain weird. Strangely enough, that was like a paradise for the Gambler, who was rumored to even go there on his free time.
Xemnas still didn't seem pleased, however, and further clarified his statement. "A different Wonderland, Luxord. A much, much darker one…"
Final boss dragon ship for the win? However, I do have a good explanation as to how that ship might relate to canon. This came over me while I was replaying the final boss fight, and I was thinking of how cool it would be to have the dragon ship in the fic. Of course, then I thought about that project, and how Xemnas's twisted subconscious might have chosen the thing as an inspiration for his…er…transformation later on. Other than that, it is just plain awesome. .
And guess which Wonderland I'm using~!
Speaking of which, do you have any world ideas I could use? If so, submit them! They might not make it, but I will definitely not just outright reject anything.