V. [Video] Lighting, What Is That.
[Hello. Siren's Port is receiving a feed that hasn't been used of late. And once it turns on, a silver-haired Nobody is shown sitting behind a desk. The room's subtle lighting creates a contrast of shadows among the First's features, enough to dramatize the setting and its subject without fully obscuring the shot
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Such a curious feeling, even now. What must it be like, to have no place at all.
He begins to walk, his stroll leisurely, his head half-turned toward the ocean. Bittersweet nostalgia plays in the dusty corners of his mind, reminding him of other evenings, other seas. Memories tug an odd smile onto his face, one that lingers all the way up to the figure in black - for once, Xehanort himself is without the coat he customarily wears while abroad.
His paces stop a good ten feet away from the Nobody, though his greeting is cordial enough. ]
It is a pleasure to at least meet you in person.
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A reflection of the past, one side of the outcome of his future. The coat certainly hasn't gone out of style since then.
As Xehanort keeps the distance between them, Xemnas turns to face him, the hood shadowing half of his already-darkened features. Silver bangs fall over his eyes, a sharp sting of gold meeting a face he half-expected to see. A vague feeling rises in his chest, dulling just as quickly as it came. Instead, he ignores it and nods.]
Indeed.
[That doesn't stop his tone from being slightly taut in comparison.]
Quite rare, arranging meetings such as this.
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My hours of leisure have been spent thus. [ He spreads his arms slightly, as if to indicate his helplessness when it comes to such matters. His civility does not falter, not in his words and not in his expression, but his calculating gaze matches Xemnas' look for for look - a near mirror image, now.
It's amusing, in its own small way. Amusing and dangerous. ]
And I am afraid that this may be the only chance that you and I will have to converse.
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...So I have seen.
[He should have been shaken to see a duplicate of his own expression, something that would have required his eyes widening in shock once everything came piecing itself together multiple times over.
But none of this occurs.]
With any assumptions as to what your current activities are, I suppose this is true. However, expecting this engagement to occur just once is highly unlikely.
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[ As he speaks, Xehanort straightens, lifting up to the considerable height that Terra so rarely used - always the follower, always the student. Never the master. Never a person of power, so caught in pride and loyalty that his considerable energies were wasted in servitude.
Ah...not entirely wasted, no. ] The hour of pleasantries is over, with enemies as well as with...friends.
[ The blandest of smiles. ] My work will soon be done. This city will end. And very few of its inhabitants will remain to see what comes after.
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Another beat passes before he speaks again, the Nobody's own solemnness tainted with an essence of disapproval.]
And this is how it all finishes? What is the point of existence if all is to be destroyed?
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Such a pity. [ He spreads his arms, as though to carry the weight of his visions and display them for his future, lesser half. ] From the ashes of the old, the new will be reborn. To enter into the true Kingdom Hearts is to enter into a power the likes of which even gods cannot comprehend.
[ This smile is anything but mild; his eyes gleam, as intent as they are intelligent - as they are predatory. ]
I will see what comes after the end. I will fashion it with my own hands.
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This just happens to be a very special case.]
From what I have seen and have already told you, Xehanort - there is no chance of this plan coming to fruition. [Not by you.] Kingdom Hearts cannot be completed without all of its properties. Even if you did have them, it will still fail. [Behind his stoic facade, the subtle nuances which reflect the subtle changes from the city of Nautilus are clear.]
Do not underestimate the power of the keyblade wielders.
[Gold eyes narrow, mirroring those which stare back at him. There is no smile present here.]
And do not underestimate me.
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There is always more. Always. But Xehanort knows far better than to share such things - Braig never knew. Vanitas was likewise ignorant. And so it will remain, because only an absolute fool speaks of all his plans before they come to fruition. ]
And I don’t doubt that the children have in their possession some instrument of my demise. Or sincerely believe they do. But they possess a capacity that you must already know you lack.
[ That so-distinctive sound, like a hum or a ring. His Keyblade lights the night, the tip sunk into the sand and his palm resting on the pommel. Xehanort’s eyes remained steady, solidly on the Nobody’s ( ... )
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Comments and statements that should not have meant anything to him cut to the quick, rubbing in what is already known ( -foolish- ) and wearing his already-thinning patience down ( -wait, how did that even happen?? It shouldn't even be- ) to almost nothing.
There is only more of a vague gathering of what can be deemed anger put into the glare he already wears as the Keyblade with its wickedly-sharp edges emanates from the other's hand. No one has ever gone so far as to speak this way to him - Nobody, Somebody, or any other creature, for that matter; just...Xehanort.
A past self.
Light starts to crackle from his own gloved hands, fingers flinching.]
...You will regret saying any of this...!
[Red ethereal blades bring another light source into view as the First rushes the keyblade master to close the distance in between them, swinging them out to either side of his body.]
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I do wonder if you were at least partially mistaken, old friend.
Were his Nobody not so...incised, Xehanort would have told him how impressed he is. He would have applauded him for this display, because surely he could not be so heartless as previously assumed if he could find passion enough in him to rush, raging, toward his own demise.
It may be that their pretense is not for our benefit, but for their own. ]
I regret only that we could not reconcile our differences.
[ Xehanort does not move. Only his eyes change, narrowing slightly, and then the air around them is filled with Light ( ... )
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The blades in hand waver slightly, only being reinforced to clash against his newly-given obstacles. He doesn't get every last one, however, taking a blow as a shaft or two manages to get past his practiced strikes. They send him back several feet, boots dragging into the wet sand beneath him.
It's even more disturbing to see that one bar of light is still protruding from his side. Arms hang limp, red blades humming silently as they meet the slow wash of the waves. This will not stop him. Xemnas shoots another look at Xehanort. This time, there are no words for the man.
He doesn't deserve them.
The Nobody crouches, jumping into the air to close the distance once more, whirling as two blades turn into a circle of crimson energy aiming to strike back at the keyblade master. Whether it connects or not...well. He is fighting ( ... )
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He has been forced to fight so many creatures born from darkness as of late; how was he to know he would need to prepare.
But it matters little. This...this would be enough.
Behind the light, behind the great flash that courses upward to slam into the Nobody's body, Xehanort leaps forward, Keyblade a spearpoint of black and silver amidst the brightness. His target: the center of his opponent's head, a little high, almost directly between his eyes.
After all, the heart could not be a weak point when facing an enemy that did not have one.
Such a shame, this is. You have my ( ... )
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How long is subject to debate, but even with the orders he was given, he can't simply sit in his office and wait for the inevitable. It's been too long, and after all these years, he's as tangled up in this mess as Xemnas is -- perhaps even more so, given his history. Of all the people who've arrived from their "universe", he's the only one who remembers what once was and what now is. This is as much his business as it is the others', and he won't be written off as anything less.
Even so, he hesitates. Though this confrontation may have been a forgone conclusion from the moment the fragment and the whole both found themselves in Siren's Port, it's not something he ever wanted to see. Both have plenty to recommend themselves, and one, certainly, is far more powerful than the other. He remembers well what it was like to be on the other end of that dark blade. He remembers fear. Now, he just finds it ironic that this is one time he'll benefit from not having a heart ( ... )
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It would have been quite a scene, taking a mean-looking keyblade right between the eyes. And in regards to the audience, it's so very close to crossing a line on the grand scale of violence.
But, fortunately - more or less - this attack doesn't happen. The ridiculous amount of light leads from one diversion to another, snapping the Nobody out of his sudden daze. The manipulation of space. An infinite loop.]
Xigbar- !
[As this commences and continues, the Superior's landing is rough. Collapsing to one knee, he takes a sharp breath as the Second takes over to literally support him.]
.....
[Gold eyes will say much more than he can verbally in this moment. Xigbar's plan of retreat is going to have ( ... )
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He sees sand.
He sees sky.
Sand.
And sky again.
And always falling, in that long descent of dreams and mental instability that the laws of the universe have means of stopping. Whoever fashioned the fall has no regard for gravity.His anger is monumental ( ... )
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