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towerofanimus2013-09-02 06:22 pm
firstnothing) wrote in towerofanimus2013-09-02 06:22 pm
A whole new world o/`
Name: Xemnas and ANYONE
Format: Prose, Actions. Whatever people are most comfortable with; beginning prose.
Setting:Room 2-10, then Travel Time to Floor 61.
Summary: Dude, Where's My Castle? Or, Xemnas Arrival.
Warnings: Possibly violence. Possibly not. Very brief nudity. Will update as things happen.
Notes: Limited number of locations to start with, because hugegame is huge.
Sleep paralysis is a new experience, and is waited out with measured patience. Not being able to move isn't particularly alarming, as it doesn't come with pain or disorientation. The room is unfamiliar. That.. is more troubling. Unusual outfit: check. Collar: check. The white didn't bother him overmuch, even though it wasn't as comfortable as the uniforms he'd painstakingly made. A search of the collar finds no fasteners, and pulling on it did no good so he doesn't waste his time trying to tear it free. Both notes are skimmed then set on the bed; the chances of a world that didn't exist being destroyed were slim. It was of no concern. What was ... was being somewhere he shouldn't be, and attempting to form a corridor of darkness to the castle failing outright.
Xemnas, being a fairly practical creature, comes to the conclusion that finding out where he is, is a reasonable good step.
If any of his new roommates are there, he politely disregards the presence of others in favor of standing, investigating the chest at the foot of the narrow bed and almost immediately stripping out of the white skin-tight outfit that had been provided him and replacing it with the black uniform of the Organization.
Sometimes free shows can't be helped.
--
It doesn't take long before he's satisfied with what he knows of the dormitory floors. People aren't his concern, and he doesn't bother to greet anyone he comes across. He'll query individuals later, once he has a solid map in his mind of where he is. He couldn't use a corridor to get somewhere he hadn't been before, after all. If he's stopped, well, that's different.
Then peaceful, patient elevator travel. There were only a certain number of floors it would stop at but he'd investigate each one eventually.
--
The elevator opening to a grassy plain is unexpected, as are the distant mountains. Did the elevator connect to entirely different worlds, a peculiar technological version of world-hopping? This is worth investigating a little more thoroughly, and in short order there is a dark shape moving through the waist-deep grass, almost but not quite curious. It seems like a peaceful place, and aside from plants, Xemnas could detect no other obvious signs of life in his immediate vicinity.
He doesn't notice the clouds at first. Or the mountains.
Because honestly, the holes in the ground are much more attention-grabbing, and difficult to spot.
He finds one the hard way. There's a yelp as the ground he expected to be underfoot in his next step simply isn't there, sending him tumbling into some til-now hidden pit. Falling to one's demise probably normally elicits more of a reaction than vague irritation that that was incredibly undignified, but killing a Nobody by dropping them from great heights doesn't usually work.
Especially when they can teleport. Xemnas relied on line of sight, but his reactions were quick enough that he's not falling for more than a moment before he flickers into being above the hole and just to one side, dropping a few feet back onto the grass with a thump. Frowning, the edges of the pit are carefully explored. He's.. going to be here a while.
Format: Prose, Actions. Whatever people are most comfortable with; beginning prose.
Setting:Room 2-10, then Travel Time to Floor 61.
Summary: Dude, Where's My Castle? Or, Xemnas Arrival.
Warnings: Possibly violence. Possibly not. Very brief nudity. Will update as things happen.
Notes: Limited number of locations to start with, because hugegame is huge.
Sleep paralysis is a new experience, and is waited out with measured patience. Not being able to move isn't particularly alarming, as it doesn't come with pain or disorientation. The room is unfamiliar. That.. is more troubling. Unusual outfit: check. Collar: check. The white didn't bother him overmuch, even though it wasn't as comfortable as the uniforms he'd painstakingly made. A search of the collar finds no fasteners, and pulling on it did no good so he doesn't waste his time trying to tear it free. Both notes are skimmed then set on the bed; the chances of a world that didn't exist being destroyed were slim. It was of no concern. What was ... was being somewhere he shouldn't be, and attempting to form a corridor of darkness to the castle failing outright.
Xemnas, being a fairly practical creature, comes to the conclusion that finding out where he is, is a reasonable good step.
If any of his new roommates are there, he politely disregards the presence of others in favor of standing, investigating the chest at the foot of the narrow bed and almost immediately stripping out of the white skin-tight outfit that had been provided him and replacing it with the black uniform of the Organization.
Sometimes free shows can't be helped.
--
It doesn't take long before he's satisfied with what he knows of the dormitory floors. People aren't his concern, and he doesn't bother to greet anyone he comes across. He'll query individuals later, once he has a solid map in his mind of where he is. He couldn't use a corridor to get somewhere he hadn't been before, after all. If he's stopped, well, that's different.
Then peaceful, patient elevator travel. There were only a certain number of floors it would stop at but he'd investigate each one eventually.
--
The elevator opening to a grassy plain is unexpected, as are the distant mountains. Did the elevator connect to entirely different worlds, a peculiar technological version of world-hopping? This is worth investigating a little more thoroughly, and in short order there is a dark shape moving through the waist-deep grass, almost but not quite curious. It seems like a peaceful place, and aside from plants, Xemnas could detect no other obvious signs of life in his immediate vicinity.
He doesn't notice the clouds at first. Or the mountains.
Because honestly, the holes in the ground are much more attention-grabbing, and difficult to spot.
He finds one the hard way. There's a yelp as the ground he expected to be underfoot in his next step simply isn't there, sending him tumbling into some til-now hidden pit. Falling to one's demise probably normally elicits more of a reaction than vague irritation that that was incredibly undignified, but killing a Nobody by dropping them from great heights doesn't usually work.
Especially when they can teleport. Xemnas relied on line of sight, but his reactions were quick enough that he's not falling for more than a moment before he flickers into being above the hole and just to one side, dropping a few feet back onto the grass with a thump. Frowning, the edges of the pit are carefully explored. He's.. going to be here a while.
[ Floor 61 ]
It's not like they're hard to spot, after all.
As he passes by floor 61 on the elevator, the unmistakable aura of a powerful Nobody hits him. But as fast as that feeling hits him, it's gone once he's out of range.
That... hadn't come with the additional flavor of an element. But it had been so fast, there was no way of telling who this could be unless he just left the elevator and investigated. With a sigh, he flips up the hood of his coat and Corridors back to that floor he'd felt the aura originate from.
Once out, he finds himself... almost freezing in place when the aura hits him again. Damn, that's oppressive - whoever this was, they were powerful. And there were only a few members of Organization XIII that were this strong.
Seeing them fall into a hole, only to teleport back up was almost amusing - until he got a look at the face of the originator of that aura.
... w e l p. This... ... is an interesting development.
Don't mind this hooded guy as he tries to collect himself. He's used to doubles and timeline shenanigans, but seeing Xemnas again outside of his memories is something he never given much thought to.
He's actually shocked. And not a good kind of shock. What can be made out of his body language spells that out plainly.]
Re: [ Floor 61 ]
Patience is a virtue, isn't it?
It really is hard to mistake the Darkness that clung to him like a second skin, making him very easy to find, if being a tall guy in black in a sea of green wasn't doing that already. When the stranger is noted, it's only with a brief glance at first as most of his attention and effort is focused on the rock.
Which is then carefully set at the very edge of the hole.
The hood up really disguses exactly who's there but there simply aren't a lot of people in Xemnas' worldview who would dare wear the Organization's uniform without being a member of it. He studies the shape - adult, masculine, sturdy frame. Could be any number - before raising one hand silently. A flare of brilliant yellow provides a weapon where there hadn't been, one of the few with a sharp cutting edge.
And then he begins removing some of the grass at the edge of the hole.]
"Come here."
[It's not a request. He has a rock to throw into a hole, and that theoretical Nobody over there could just make himself useful.]
[ Floor 61 ]
He slowly lets out a breath he hadn't realized he had been holding. He... hadn't been recognized based on silhouette alone. That was a bit of a blessing. But being given an order, with the expectation to follow it - and Xemnas clearing a path for him is strange in of itself - he... hesitates, for a moment.
Just a moment. Then he nods, and carefully makes his way over.
If he's assumed to just be a subordinate, he... should probably play along. It might make things easier in the short-term. He just has to remember not to talk.
He makes sure to very visibly look between the rock, the hole, and Xemnas, and tilt his head slightly to one side, to phrase a question without saying anything.
'You want to throw that in there?']
Re: [ Floor 61 ]
Every reaction the theoretical-Nobody makes is measured and observed without being obvious about it. Hesitation, the slow hiss of breath.
Apprehension?
A mystery to be picked at, when he had a moment. Right now Xemnas didn't have a moment, he had a rock. There were many mysteries to work out in ths place, and he would handle them one at a time as he chose to. Right now that involved a stone, a pit of an unknown depth, and a little assistance in resolving the unknown part of the former thought.
His stranger didn't speak. That itself was another peculiarity. A nobody didn't necessarily need words, none of the dusks spoke aloud. But the lack is noteworthy.]
"... Yes. Why else would I find a rock, and put it at the edge of a hole of unknown dimensions, then begin clearing a path around it?"
[In anyone else that might be incredibly ascerbic but from Xemnas it's just mild neutrality, the reproof barely actually there. No, he's more occupied with picking his way fastidiously to the other side of the hole, then making a brief beckoning gesture with one hand, watching not the stranger or the rock, but the stone. Give it a push.]
"Try to hit the sides if you can."
[ Floor 61 ]
He calms himself and nods, then looks at the rock. It didn't look that difficult to move, even unaided... a little push would really be all he needed.
But if Xemnas wanted the sides of the hole to be struck on the way down... that'd require a little more than physical force.
He holds back making a non-committal 'hmmm' sound, and crosses his arms, clearly studying the thing so he can figure out the best angle to do this at. A brief nod to himself as he figures out what is needed, and with the slightest amount of earth-based magic behind it to help with connecting to and moving the thing, very casually pushes the large rock into the hole.
There are some rather satisfying 'thuds' as it impacts and ricochets off the sides of the hole on the way down, and then he crosses his arms again and looks back at Xemnas.
You can almost, almost imagine that whoever is under there has their eyebrow raised in a 'now what?' gesture.
If you're waiting for the rock to hit the bottom, he's almost positive that there isn't a bottom for the rock to hit.]
Re: [ Floor 61 ]
Which seems to be what he's after, given he seems to be counting under his breath, too quiet to be heard.
Only when it's too quiet for him to hear does he straighten up, looking thoughtful.
Presumably there is a bottom, it's just too far to actually hear. A truly bottomless hole would certainly be something to experience. An apeture for a corridor of darkness erupts into being behind him, and then, still looking thoughtful and very obviously distracted, the yellow energy blade in hand once more, Xemnas steps off the edge.
It doesn't take long to disappear from sight.
A good solid thirty seconds pass before he reappears from that open corridor, looking a little windblown but otherwise just fine. Leave it to a nobody to find ways around 'falling to one's death'.]
"Terminal velocity within fifteen seconds and no obvious bottom in sight, presuming a range of only five hundred feet or so of decent sight at that depth. The hole is at least three thousand feet deep. I wonder.."
[Tanned fingers twitch as he glances around quickly. He'd spoken to someone earlier, perhaps if they were still around he could throw them in and see how long it took the screaming to stop..]
[ Floor 61 ]
The second he sees Xemnas jump down the hole, he can't keep himself from speaking. The instinctual reaction to seeing someone toss themselves into a very, very deep hole take over.] Wait, don't-!
[As it stands, there is no way in the Light or Dark realms that he is going down after you.
Okay. Deep breaths. Xemnas is logical - he wouldn't jump down unless he knew was he was doing and had a way back up.
Corridors. Teleporting. He has a way back up.] Calm down, Terra...
[Easier said than done - the real chore comes in getting his heartbeat to slow down again.
Ten seconds pass. Twenty. Thirty, and then Xemnas is back up, looking completely unfazed by the fall.
Seriously. Throwing yourself into a hole that likely has no bottom, for science? ... Typical.]
Re: [ Floor 61 ]
Everything he does has a purpose.
Perhaps it had been too long since Terra was Xemnas, or simply didn't want to remember, or had been too different from the start. He absently rakes one hand through his hair, which does nothing to smooth it down at all, frowning at the offending pit though no real grumpiness is there to go with it. It might well seem that his current minor frustration with the hole might well override what he'd heard when he jumped.
That simply isn't true. He just addresses things when he's ready to address him and not all his consernation is related to not being able to find a bottom to that thing quickly and easily.
Just as troublesome, there's no easy nearby victim to throw in besides Terra, and he's not going to kill a mystery to solve a mystery, he'd be left with the first one unsolved. That simply wouldn't do.]
"Are you going to keep wearing that hood?"
[He paces the edge of the pit, attention still mostly on it for all appearances, and not his other-self. Past-self. Past-self in an Organization uniform.]
"You betrayed yourself long before you spoke, though your concern seems to be reflexive more than truly in my best interests. Hesitation and surprise marked your entrance, mine would not greet me so. What good does hiding serve you now?"
[No, he's definitely paying more attention to that pit. He doesn't deal well with mysteries he can't solve, but it's one he'll probably just have to ... let go.]
[ Floor 61 ]
Well. He knew that the second he opened his mouth, the 'game', as it were, would be up.] ... I guess not.
[It's definitely not the voice of any member of Organization XIII, though it should be more than familiar to Xemnas. And though he has been called out, he still doesn't lower it.
But judging by the way he's idly fingering the outer hem of said hood, he's considering lowering it.] Force of habit, really. You can never be too careful in this hell hole.
[Without further hesitation, he lowers the hood.
Well. One mystery solved. And no, that doesn't mean you can throw him down that pit. :|]
no subject
Bah.
But as it seems he'll be obeyed, Xemnas quite obviously does not have any sudden flash of recognition at the repetition of that voice. Few people could recognize the sound of themselves when heard for the first time externally, and he's not an exception; his own voice sounds different, both in his head and aloud. That Terra also lacks the pleasant baritone Xemnas spoke with really didn't help.]
"Why do you hesitate? Do something and risk a mistake rather than be frightened into doing nothing."
[There's no variance in his calm, or his patience. If Terra chose to delay, Xemnas would simply wait him out.
But it seems he doesn't have to wait too long, and as the stranger finally chooses to reveal himself, Xemnas considers him silently for several long moments. Then approaches; there's nothing of aggressiveness in his stance or how he moves, but he fully intends to inspect this brown-haired version of self from all easily accessed angles. Then quite purposefully reach out with every intention to touch, to rest one hand where there should in a normal person be a heartbeat.
Where there hasn't been for Xemnas, for over ten years. He keeps his movements metholodical and slow, making certain there isn't the swiftness that could imply attack. This other-self was oddly jumpy. Silver eyebrows rise slightly, when he reaches ..whatever unknown, unknowable conclusion he reaches.]
"Interesting. Unexpected. From whence do you come, then? You're too old to be from the past. Does the future go unexpectedly, or are you here to fetch me for the final conflict?"
[There.. should be more. There should be more than measured interest and mild curiosity. Suspicion, shock, fear, hostility, something beside the evenness he addresses most things with. Even this. Multiple realities aren't something he's considering, just yet.]
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It's hard, clamping down on that instinct that says to put more distance between the two, and just letting Xemnas carry out his inspection.
At that question, he can only shake his head.] No, I'm not here for that.
[He'd sooner find more ways to wreck that plan and permanently end the original Xehanort, but that doesn't matter here in the tower. Either way, it seems like it's time to explain a few tower essentials.] I'm... a possibility. Everyone in the tower is not only from different worlds, but sometimes, different versions of those worlds.
[It's simple, but complicated all at once. He won't mention being able to count to four on Riku.]
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"No?"
[Interesting again. The explanation, lacking in the exacting details Xemnas preferred in an explanation but enough to get the concept across, is also noteworthy but difficult to accept immediately. If possibilities were so easily grasped and united then there would be no need for time travel at all.
Possibilities, maybes were almost but not quite agitating. It was hard to plan around a maybe.]
"What rifts the boundaries between entire realities?"
[It doesn't hurt to ask. Only then does he step away, to poke through the grass again. The devouring pits weren't everywhere, and careful examination finds a good bit with nothing but grass there. The time is taken to flatten some of it down in a small but gradually widening circle. Motion helped him think.]
"And yet in spite of perhaps parallel realities, you recognized me upon arrival. What differs, from your time and space? If such a thing is true. How do you recognize what you should be? Without being, how would you recognize?"
[Idle musing that rapidly spirals into unspoken philosophical internal debate. Terra should by rights BE Xemnas. If he isn't, and someone else was, how could Xemnas so easily be recognized? More mysteries.]
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He waits until Xemnas finishes his not-so-internal musing, watching him pace. Once the Nobody is finished, he shrugs, and very purposefully begins to emulate his speaking patterns.] It is as I said - I am a possibility. The twists and turns of my own universe are small, but numerous; as curious as I am about how your universe works, I will refrain from asking.
[Ugh. Talking like this is leaving a bitter taste in his mouth. But still, he continues.] How could I not, when I very distinctly recall being you?
no subject
An interesting trigger. It will have to be remembered.
The pacing, it becomes apparent, isn't just for moving around. After a little bit of work he's got about an eight foot wide circle of grass neatly flattened down. Whereupon he neatly folds up long legs and sits down. From a distance all anyone would see is silver hair amidst the sea of grass, but close up, he has his flattened circle.
He could stand on principle. He chooses not to.
The way Terra's tone changes earns a glance upward, bemused.]
Oh no, ask away. I shouldn't like to turn away an inquisitive mind, so long as you'll abide question for question.
[He seems quite comfortable there in the grass. There's no invitation for Terra to join him, but he could if he chose to. No monarch stood when they didn't have to, in the presence of others.]
And yet you're not, for very obvious reasons. And I would never allow myself to be executed to chase the foolishness of all that came before. I wonder at these differences.
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When Xemnas's motive for the 'pacing' becomes apparent, he almost smiles. How... strangely considerate of the Nobody. Even if there's no invitation, the very fact that he went through the effort to do such a thing and then sat is implication enough.] I think I can agree to those terms.
He carefully steps into the cleared area, being mindful to make sure he actually avoids any holes, and picks a spot to sit.
He might as well start with how he's, well. Himself.] It was patience and luck, really, that restored me to what I am.
[It's complicated, without background. But until he can give that...] What's the last important thing you remember, before you woke up here?
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Terra is watched as he likewise sits, but nothing's said. If it had or hadn't been an invitation he's not clarifying, but there certainly had been more than enough space for one. Or two or three for that matter. When an answer comes, as to how or why Terra looks like himself and not Xemnas, there's a sharp rise of silver brows.]
Very well done. You've managed to both answer the question and not answer anything at all. I'll be hard-pressed to match that.
[And there's every sign and sense that he's utterly serious. Then again, it's the Superior, he's not known for a sense of humor, or even exaggeration. And guilelessness seems intact as he leabs back a little, bemused at the counter-question.]
Not something I can attempt to obfuscate on purpose. Clarify 'important'. Important to who? Or what? One might consider Axel and Xion managing to nearly incinerate half the basement by 'accidentally' bumping Vexen's work to be important, but it's hardly long-term relevant.
no subject
However, even though he's smirking, very little humor actually reaches his eyes when he says this..] I learned from the best.
[Well. Interesting not-slip there, Xemnas. You still remember Xion. That's... interesting.] Important in a general sense. For example... Sora, and whatever his current state of consciousness - or lack thereof - might be.
[Because whether the Keybearer is awake or not, he is something to factor into plans, if only for ways to work around the kid - ugh, he needs to stop thinking like this.]
no subject
Ah, I see. You spent more time around Maleficent than I did. I don't know how you tolerated her presence, in which case. Her unsettling obsession with the princesses was more than I could tolerate for long.
[While it's true that Maleficent was amazing at not answering things directly, Terra absolutely didn't mean her. Xemnas seems oblivious, turning his attention briefly to a blue and green beetle studiously crawling up a squashed grass stem.]
The young keybearer. He's much too young for that sort of responsibility.
[It's said with a tone of voice that suggests he actually means it.. and is a little annoyed at whoever decided otherwise.]
I don't keep much track of him or his companions, truthfully. Last time I saw him in person he was being shown out of Oblivion Castle after causing quite a bit of trouble I had to work quite hard to fix. Thankfully he seems disinclined to cause problems on his own. He's dropped off our radar since, but if he's worthy of his weapon then he'll crop back up sooner or later.
[Namine has also disappeared, but that part goes unsaid.]
no subject
[... interesting sentiment, and given Terra's sigh, it's possible that they're actually in agreement on that.] ... yeah. Not even Ven's age, and he's stuck with picking up the mess we made.
[Why no other Keybearers had popped up to help Sora until near the end had been... baffling to him, as Xemnas. He knew the states of Aqua and Ven... but what about Yen Sid and Mickey? Why hadn't they stepped in until after Sora had woken up?
He makes a 'hmmm' noise and looks thoughtful. While not a definitive answer - the gap between Sora's 'disappearance' and his reawakening was rather substantial - it gave Terra something to work off of.] And how long has it been, since he dropped off your radar?
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[The correction is immediate and quiet, but it's there. And there's no emotion attached to it whatsoever - but Xemnas did not associate himself with the failures and mistakes of who he was before, be it Terra or Xehanort.]
If the boy has a Master, his Master is doing a terrible job of it and should be properly chastised for their failures. If he turns up again, with luck he can be put to work. He wants to destroy Heartless, I want them destroyed, there's no reason at all we should be hostile to each other.
[He had one keybearer, he'd prefer two or three. Backups, and simple numbers, made the work both safer and swifter, which Xemnas approved of on both fronts. Question of how long draws a pause that speaks more of trying to remember and less of trying to come up with a deception. Eventually, there's the barest of shrugs.]
I don't recall. A few months, perhaps? Longer? Not more than a year, certainly, I don't lose that much track of time. And now a question of my own. How did you really slip the noose, self from another time and space? I don't want vague assertions, I want details.
no subject
He'll nod, though, conceding that point, before sighing.] As far as I knew, Sora never had a proper Master. I don't even know who passed the Keyblade on to him, though I have my suspicions. That he has grown as strong as he has with no formal instruction is commendable.
[But the kid should've had a Master to begin with. Him and Riku both. That they hadn't was just one more thing to place on the list of the consequences of Xehanort's actions.
He nods slightly; with the confirmation that it hadn't been a year since Sora had 'been escorted out of Castle Oblivion', he has a very good idea of when Xemnas was pulled from in his timeline. Compared to Terra's own place in his...
He manages to keep himself from smirking. Somewhat.
How does he even begin to explain how he became himself again? It's so complicated, and the chain of events relying so heavily on chance...
A deep breath as he collects his thoughts. Simple should be best... he hopes.] If your timeline is anything like mine, it'll be about... six months later, maybe a little longer. I remember that in that span, those that remained among your number had gotten on Sora's bad side - threatening to turn his friends into powerful Heartless tends to do that for anyone as loyal as Ven. Because of that, he made it his mission to stop you. Having Kairi as a... 'guest' only helped give him further motivation.
[A pause, as he tries to recall the events from shortly before his revival and put them into an order that makes sense.] When Sora and the king's men arrived at the World that Never Was, he wasn't alone - Mickey and Riku had made their way in, separately from Sora, as well as... someone thought to be long since perished - Ansem the Wise.
[That had been... unexpected, to say the least.] Master Ansem had some sort of machine with him; a portable form of that laser in his labs that could convert matter into data.
[Though it doesn't need to be said...] When I found him, he was trying to convert the false Kingdom Hearts into data. As you might expect, the sheer amount of data along with the unpredictable nature of hearts was causing the machine to overload.
[He frowns, then shakes his head.] There was a bright light as the machine essentially detonated from overloading, and I blacked out. When I woke up again... Xehanort's darkness was gone, but my mind felt like it was shrouded in fog. I know I was in Yen Sid's tower, and he was apologizing for not figuring out sooner what had happened to me.
no subject
[He wasn't certain of every detail of what it entailed to wield a keyblade, but he was certain of that much. Having someone who already knew every trick, that wouldn't rely on the accident of discovery.. assuming the discovery ever happened to begin with! Xemnas knew the boy had potential, but didn't think of him as a threat. One angry child, and one that had submitted and complied very quickly when handed the ultimatum of 'Kill mine, and I'll kill yours'.
But as Terra begins to outline a possible future that may or may not happen, Xemnas remains silent and almost completely motionless, seemingly content to just sit in the tall grass and listen. 'Simple' is admirable by way of speed but always leaves out details.
Details he'll want to know. Some is already useful; in at least one reality Ansem still lives, and actively works to destroy what Xemnas had forged. Tenacious bastard.
When Terra reaches Yen Sid and apologies, there are several things that stick and need to be asked about, some more important than others. Xemnas had no problem pushing the inquiry further. But there's a ... strange undercurrent to the question that comes, edged in something dangerous.]
Clarify what you mean by 'those that remained among my number'.
[It's not concern, he can't feel concern. Why this of all things? Xemnas should be well aware of what it meant. In Terra's timeline, as many others, Oblivion is a massacre.]
no subject
He pauses, hearing that odd note in Xemnas's tone. It's... hard to pin down what that is, given that this is Xemnas he is speaking with.
... it's not quite 'protectiveness', though it's damn close. But it's enough of a hint that he should choose his words carefully.] In my timeline, those that were assigned to Castle Oblivion, aside from Axel, were destroyed. The report I received from him was elaborate enough when detailing Eleven and Twelve's traitorous plans, but was... frustratingly vague as to how three loyal members were eliminated.
[He lets some of his own frustration at that report into his tone, the barest hints of anger and grief sneaking in along with it. While as Xemnas, he had been incapable of true feeling, he'd 'felt' the loss of Lexeaus, Vexen, and Zexion rather keenly.
The nameless apprentice had considered Elaeus and Even the closet friends he had out of Ansem's six apprentices, and he'd been protective of the youngest apprentice. To lose them had... hurt.]
no subject
Differently enough to assign someone else the job of handling the problem instead of doing it himself, and getting several more people killed in the process. To Xemnas, this is neglect and stupidity of an unforgiveable level. Had Terra been one of his, and this sort of ineptitude and the price of it come to light..]
Why didn't you interfere? Oblivion was not an execution sentence. The threat of the boy was effortlessly negated, and Axel will obey when given orders to not use lethal force. Why did you allow them to disappear?
[Allow. As if Terra should have been there right along, and thus must have chosen to step aside and do nothing.]
I can only assume some greater crisis had your attention at the time. ... Or I have grossly overestimated precisely how much we are alike.
no subject
[There is so much distaste for that line of thinking, and for having to let those events run their course, in his tone. Even though he isn't looking directly at Xemnas anymore, there is guilt showing itself in his expression.] The orders were to investigate, not eliminate. I can only make assumptions on what exactly occurred - again, his report on the deaths of Vexen, Lexeaus, and Zexion were frustratingly vague.
[He also had a sleeping Keyderp to keep an eye on.]
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