Castle Oblivion

Kingdom Hearts fanfic... what really happened at Castle Oblivion? But don't worry, even if you don't play, you can still understand this. Its pretty easy to catch on.

Castle Oblivion

   "He knows..." I whispered under my breath.

   Axel knew; he was the only one who wasn't supposed to... and I knew now exactly how he did it. Saix! How did Larxene not figure it out before? She was the one who gave me the confirmation! But I was sure of it, about Axel, and from the way Larxene's eyes widened as she looked over at me I can assume now she, too, knows.

   Marluxia, she mouths urgently as Axel comes through the north doorway to the center staircase (at which Larxene and I were standing at the bottom). I can't help the glare that creases my brow.

   Axel answers with a sarcastic smirk that melts over the rest of his features. His long, thin arms crossed over his chest, over his Organization coat.

   "Well, that about does it." He says easily followed by a slight laugh. A knowing, calculating spark lights his green eyes. Its nearly dusk, but the castle we were sent to to gain recon information, Castle Oblivion, was always dimly lit no matter which room you happened to be in.

   "Where's Vexen?" Larxene snarls and I wish I could backhand the blond b***h. What fool! If there was any chance he didn't realize before and we could overtake him with him the element of surprise... but perhaps that course never had a chance to begin with. Not as long as Axel acts upon Saix's orders like a faithful dog.

   And as if Larxene didn't know full well what happened to the others. Zexion, Lexaeus, and now Vexen... they're all gone. A dead Nobody without a soul or a heart to their name, ceasing to exist in any realm now... No matter.

   "C'mon, guys," Axel said easily. In the time it takes to blink he launched from the second story railing, and landed a few feet in front of Larxene and I on the midnight black carpet. Larxene flinched. I did not.

   Axel resumed a defensive stance I knew all too well from our time together in the Organization. "What's with all the foreplay?" He asked and I knew if I had a heart it would have started to race, "Because if you don't care I'd like to skip to the good stuff."

   Axel said the last part with a challenging sneer, his two cherry red chakrams conjured in his outstretched hands.

   He gave me no choice, and I drew out my scythe in response, glassy pink at the top with a dark green staff. All of our weapons reflected out realms of control. I proudly admit to have the rule over flowers and some other species of plant life. Larxene had electricity (her knives crackled with sparks of deadly static enough to stun her opponent before she killed them), and Axel... Axel was fire.

   Axel, who's spiked red hair was like a real flame, and the gleam in his dark green eyes like a forest so alive... No one would deny Axel was attractive, if you would permit me one small human emotion. Is that quite possible? Or strictly physical?

   No, physical it must be physical. That's a cold impossibility and I was angry with myself for thinking such things at a time like this. I would have to fight to the bitter end with this man and I was thinking of his eyes!  

   Besides, the only one, or two, I should say, that really mean anything in this equation represent the only elemental gift, or realm of control, that means a damned thing. Light. Not flowers, not fire, not electricity. Light. Roxas and Xion, I should be thinking of them. They are the important ones. The two Keyblade wielders, and out of the entire Organization those two represent the only actual use. 

   When those such as myself, or Axel, or Larxene, or even Xemnas or Saix kill a given Heartless (monsters without regret who steal the beating hearts from other living creatures. Only those strong enough to live without a heart and not become a Heartless themselves, like everyone in the Organization, are the ones who can fight against the Heartless), they release the hearts they have collected, but unless you have a Keyblade like Roxas or Xion, those hearts scatter. If a Keyblade wielder kills a Heartless, though, the hearts go to a place called "Kingdom Hearts". In theory, if enough hearts are returned to Kingdom Hearts, all of us, all of the Nobodies without hearts, will have a heart again.

   But even that theory is useless if the Keyblade wielders are being underworked. Larxene and I realized right off how slowly this operation was moving, and we won't have that. Not with everything that is at stake. Not with everything we've worked for.

   Once Roxas entered the Organization, I didn't think anything of the boy. He appeared to be just that, a boy. Nothing more.

   But I was wrong. Roxas, the thirteenth member of our Organization had a Keyblade, which is exceptionally useful and incredibly powerful. And then, a little while after Roxas was a part of us, Xion came soon after him. By then I'd fixated all my concentration on Roxas, but the girl, Xion, she was a Keyblade wielder also. And Larxene found this all very interesting as well, so, we came up with a strategy.

   If we worked together our chances of success would be greater, because we both agreed that the Organization's work would be done much faster and Kingdom Hearts would be far closer to completion if Xemnas was overthrown. And Saix would need to be taken out, too.

   Xemnas just didn't grasp the importance of the Keyblade! This was what we needed, all we needed, and then we could be again. We could live, whatever that would mean for us. We would have hearts, again. We would be able to feel things other than strict numbness binding us to an outer shell of what must be our true selves. And I didn't want to wait for Roxas and Xion to realize how direly we needed them to work faster than they are now. They should be killing, devouring Heartless every second now! And every second that goes by is another one stuck like this. And Xemnas won't do anything about that, so its time there was a new rule. Larxene and I could take over and take down Xemnas, Saix, and it looked as though now we would need to kill Axel, too.

   But whatever it took, I would do it. Larxene made that promise, too. However, I couldn't quite get rid of the even colder feeling I got at the prospect of killing Axel.

   "Axel," I said, but was also poised for attack, "You know what we're after, you must know by now. Why do you stand beside Xemnas and Saix? Don't you want a heart, too? If you worked with Larxene and I, you have a much greater chance of receiving one sooner."

   And then that infuriating man had the nerve to laugh in my face. "What? Your afraid to take me down two on one? I must be scarier than I thought."

   "We'd never be afraid of you," Larxene spat venomously; "All we were asking for was one more person on our side. But if your too scared to break away from "your master" Xemnas, I'll be just as happy to kill you myself, then maybe I can take that little brat Roxas off your hands. Oh, and Xion, too."

   "Xemnas will fall. Surely you know that once the others catch word of a chance to have a heart sooner, they'll be just as ready to work 13 and 14 to death as well as we are." I reasoned, but Axel just shook his head.

   "Does everything go in one ear and out the other? I don't want to join your two-manned resistance party, got it memorized? And you seem to forget that I don't work for anyone but those who can kill me if they find out I've got on their bad side, namely Xemnas. So, not that I haven't enjoyed chatting with you, but can we just stop with the dramatics and get on with it? I've got a clock tower to visit back home and if I don't make it by sunset I'll be late."

   I'll take that as initiative.  

   I lunged foreword, throwing all of my weight into it, and I raised my scythe high over my head, readying for a swing. I heard a cry behind me and knew Larxene was on her way to attack, too. Axel, however, still seemed completely unfazed, which made my blood boil. To increase our chances, I had let Axel have a way to still survive... how blind can he be? Fine then, I'll end him now and take care of Xemnas once we make way to the portal leading back to our castle, The Castle that Never Was.  

   One fatal blow, I thought, roaring as my scythe, feather light in my hands, came down with ease. But, as the hourglass ticked down the moments left for him, for Axel, he threw himself backwards and the tip of my scythe barely grazed him.

   From beside the bottom of the staircase, Axel was clutching his shoulder. I hadn't killed him, but I had wounded him. He snickered, "You nicked me a little, Marluxia, round of applauds! Too bad you won't be able to do it again." When he took his hand away you could see the slash of my scythe through his shoulder.

   Larxene was close enough to him now, and she launched herself through the air, knives in her hands that eagerly crackled with electricity. As she lunged, Axel glanced up at her with a knowing smile, and threw one of his chakrams at her. And it would have hit her, but it missed. By inches. He had thrown it with such force that it became stuck in the back wall. Now he was injured, and with only one chakram. The odds were tipping in our direction with every move Axel made. And, to think, I had almost been worried we wouldn't be able to overtake him.

   Getting up, I sprinted to help Larxene. She was moving in to slash at his face, a look of vengeance in her blue eyes. But Axel wasn't going to lie down and let us finish him quite yet (though I wished he would. Even injured and with one chakram, Axel was still a threat to be taken seriously), instead he used one his most envied abilities. His use of fire magic, only it wasn't regular  fire magic, he had perfected the art of fire magic. His fire was at least five times more powerful than even Vexen, who had strictly been a magic user and hardly ever used his shield for anything. While I could use fire magic to burn, Axel could use fire magic to scorch flesh from bone.  

   I saw him starting to draw it out, his magic, and I stopped short. "Larxene!" I yelled, but she was in a dead-on sprint and was in no position to stop. Axel drew out the fire, and with a huff of determination and a flick of his wrist unleashed a furious blast of flames at Larxene. I cringed. Larxene saw what was coming a too late, and though she tried to dive out of the way, I heard her crying out in agony as the magic burned away most of the skin from her right side. 

   "Not fun to mess with a pyrokinetic... huh, Larxene?" Axel asked, pulling himself to his feet. The sheer force of his own magic had knocked him over.

   I kept my eyes locked on him, my opponent, but I couldn't stop my vision from straying to the... thing that had become Larxene. Her left side still looked like the normal Nobody woman she once was, but her right side was badly burned and ravaged with angry red blisters the covered her face, and the rest of her. That half of her Organization coat had been eaten away by the licking flames, and she screamed, because she was still on fire. She would be of no use to me, anymore.

   How has she not died yet? When will that incessant wailing cease? I asked myself. She wouldn't be of any help to me anymore, and her last screams were breaking my concentration.

   "Since I'm not in the mood to be torturing anyone, not even traitors, I'll wrap this up quick." Axel said. I stayed where I was, but I was light on my feet and would move out of his way if he tried another attack with fire. But he didn't. Not yet.

   Larxene was still screaming her last breaths, and panted heavily with the pain. She tried to pick up her head, to glare down hatred upon Axel as if that could hurt him worse than she was hurting now. Axel shook his head. "Sorry Larxy," He said, not sounding sorry at all.

   What he did next made me wonder to myself, How could I have not seen that that was his plan?, but then I thought, Better it be Larxene than I.

   From where Axel's chakram was stuck in the wall from across the room was lined up with where he had thrown Larxene with his fire. Now that she was trying to pick up her head, floating through the last dregs of her existence, she was the perfect target and Axel knew the same instant I did. But of course he knew, he set it up that way.

    That was another thing I'd always admired about Axel, he was always calm yet a roaring forest fire in the same deadly way, he seemed so carefree and yet he was intelligent, his mind always calculating. Just another thing that made him all the more desirable, but also untouchable.

   Axel used his strength, and from where his back was against the wall, he willed his chakram back to him, to land neatly in his hand. But when he had retrieved it with a satisfied grin on his face, his chakram was covered in blood. And Larxene's screaming had stopped.

   He had summoned his weapon from the back wall, and he lined up Larxene perfectly with its course of travel, so when he called back his chakram... it spun like a deadly disk through the air, making a whisking sound as it went... and as it swooped back to meet Axel's call, I heard the cracking and squishy wet sound of disfiguration. I saw it go straight through Larxene's skull as she tried to lift up her head. It went through the back and sliced off the top half of what used to be her head.

   She didn't have the time to look shocked, she only faded. Faded from this world and from any other that might be out there. She was a Nobody, once she was dead she didn't go anywhere. She was gone now, forever.

   Larxene was gone. I was the only one left against Axel.

   I remained silent, my gaze narrowing, even when Axel walked a few paces to the right, then back around to face me. "Man to man," he said, "Just how I like it."

   I'm ashamed to admit that stirred more inside of me than I'd like to tell you.

   "Then why don't you stop stalling?" I growled back. I raised my scythe. As much as Axel may intrigue me, he put me and the plan I was still going to carry out in Jeopardy. Larxene may have gone down fast, but I would not. I would not go down at all.

   "Hint taken." Axel said with his hands up in the air in a show of mock-surrender.

   Axel was crafty, he was strong, he was witty... and he was also very fast. He dove to the ground to do a back roll towards me, his chakram coming up to slice into my chest, but I was also quick and managed to jump out of the way and land on my feet before he tried to come up behind me. I turned quickly, blocking the sharp edge of his chakram with the staff of my scythe.

   But I wasn't fast enough, because he still had another chakram he swung around to bash into my right arm, making me falter. He had almost exceeded me, but not before I used aero magic to push him back and give me enough time to scramble back to a standing position. My right arm throbbed, but I was skilled enough that I could use my scythe with my left hand and be just as effective.

   I threw another aero magic at him, tossing him up in the air. Axel made a noise of surprise, not used to being caught off guard. I rushed at him with as much force as I could muster, but aero's ability was starting to wear off already since I was not specialized in that type of magic. I almost had him, almost, but he was able to move free of aero's hold before I could bring down my scythe over his head. I could have killed him similarly to the way he killed Larxene. Slice his skull in half. But I didn't get the chance, because this would be the hardest fight I'd ever had, and to win it would take every ounce of experience I had.  

   For a while it seemed like it would last eternally. Axel delivered a blow; I dodged it or was scratched by a sharp point of his chakram. I would try to strike, and Axel would parry it or receive a scrape from the tip of my scythe's blade. It could have happened for hours, or for days, and he was relentless. And so was I.

   I breathed heavily now. My stamina seemed to be holding me strong, but I knew I would not last forever. I just needed to make sure Axel was the one who gave in first.

   However the only signs of struggle Axel gave were the beads of sweat dripping down his forehead. His red hair was matted with it, dripping into his face, into his eyes as I was sure my hair (though pink and not red) looked to be doing the same.

   Eventually he took a few rapid steps backwards, saying, "Ya' gotta give in sometime, Marluxia. I told you before I don't have all day."

   "Sorry to interfere... maybe you should learn something from that, because I don't like this waste of time any more than you do." I struck at him with my scythe once more, but he caught it again with one of his chakrams. With every block he returned to me, I felt the sting in my right arm worsen. I favored my left arm now, not using my right arm for hardly anything.   

   "What, you think I'd just lie down and play dead for you? Ha!"

   He threw a chakram, cutting into my right arm again when I used it to shield my face, causing me to take in a sharp breath. The gash was much deeper than the previous one I'd had. This one split me to the bone.

   I knew my chances were going to thin out if I didn't end this soon; I had to use the strength I had left to finish him quickly.

   I hurtled myself foreword with my scythe outstretched, certain I would make impact with his lower abdominal in the quick strike I was making, but... I was wrong. I hadn't correctly judged the distance, and my lunge was going to fall short, I realized. I tried to move myself out of Axel's path of harm's way, but I fell awkwardly and on my right arm, ferociously gushing blood.

   Without hesitation Axel took the opening, throwing one chakram to pin my coat, and me, to the floor. The chakram went through my right arm, completely destroying it, and cut jaggedly into the floorboards. I couldn't get up, I couldn't move. I was pinned, helpless, and at the mercy of a man who wanted me dead.

   Axel came up silently, put one foot covered by a black boot on my chest, and his eyes shone into mine.  

   "Axel," I reasoned, maybe there was a chance I could still escape this with my life... or any semblance of life I have left; "There's still a chance to overthrow Xemnas, and Saix. Larxene is gone... you could rule now, as well. Give me a healing potion and we'll take on-"

   "Whoa, whoa, whoa, who ever said I wanted to rule the Organization? I think the way things are being run right now is just fine with me. Personally, I'd rather Roxas and Xion weren't worked to death."

   "But why not? You could have a heart, Axel! Does that not hold any draw to you at all?" I would not give in, not even now when my chances of getting out of this alive were so faint. If I could only will my scythe back to me...

   "Yeah and from the way you fight you'd be no match for Xemnas, or Saix. If you can't beat the guy that does their dirty work there's no way you can beat them. So back to business... I've been giving the task to eliminate you, and you know, orders from headquarters can be pretty strict."

   The scythe was inching towards me across the floor, one more inch... another... almost reachable... Axel used his other foot to stomp down on the blunt of the blade. From the look he had given me I'd say he had been enjoying himself.

   "Axel," I had to make at least one last attempt. That was last greatest instinct. Survival. And I was going to live, I had to try everything in my power. Even if that meant rationalizing with Axel, or, eventually, pleading... if it came to that. I felt no hatred for him, nor did I feel pride. I didn't feel upset, or any tugs of sadness. Only the urge to exist. To live was my greatest desire, because without a heart, what else could I be if not the state I'm in now? Not quite alive, but not quite dead, either. Simply existing. If I couldn't exist the way I did now, then I would simply be... nothing.

   "Axel," I tried, "What do they matter to you? Roxas and Xion? They are two Keyblade wielders! Make them kill until Kingdom Hearts is finished, and then all of us will be whole again. None of us will have to suffer anymore, and all of us will be free of this... this unnatural state of only being. We need more, Axel, and the only expense is two kids who don't remember hardly anything about who they are, if they're even anyone. Really, the sacrifice for what we need is minuscule when you compare it to all that has been lost."

   "Ohhhhh, so what your saying is that we should sacrifice two kids to kill nonstop until they're worked to death and all of us get what we want."

   "The price is small if you look at-" I coughed. I needed a potion from Axel. Now. I was going to bleed out from being nailed to the floor by this chakram.

   "The thing is, those two "kids" you're so willing to sacrifice all for the sake of this greater good happen to be the closest thing to friends I've got."

   I spluttered, "But that's impossible, you know who you are!" Axel was a Nobody, Nobodies can't have friends. Nobodies can't feel. We are without emotion, without fear or longing, love or hate. We don't have anything to feel with.

   "Impossible?" Axel poised his other chakram millimeters above my throat and when I breathed in the edges cut against my Adam's apple. He laughed again, humorously, "No, what's impossible is this half-crocked scheme you thought up with dead blondie over there."

   I couldn't answer, the sharp point, glinting steel among the bright red of his chakram burrowed into the skin just above my windpipe. It was excruciating, the way it hung there suspended just from cutting deeper, from cutting in all the way.

   Axel looked at me critically and said, "Sorry, but I'm not that Heartless."

   The last thing I saw was the burning flames of the dying, along with Axel's grim face, but the two seemed to meld until they became one last final thought. And then?

   There really was nothing. Absolutely nothing.  

Author's Note

So I based this off of what I thought happened at Castle Oblivion in Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days. Please review and tell me what you thought of this and I'll be happy to give you a review, too.

Reviews

[Trigorin]

I'm not very familiar with your setting, so I can't really comment on that, but your writing is technically correct and you're telling the story fairly well. There are parts that come across as a little stilted but there's not that many, and that's something you'll catch when you go over this. This is a very good effort here - well done.

[RachelReaper]

for the sake of helping me, can you name a part that may need a little fixing up?

[Trigorin]

The part that really stands out to me is the paragraph near the middle that begins 'Still, it was Axel...'

[RachelReaper]

would it sound better if I replaced "still" with "even so", or should I just rewrite that sentence, in your opinion?

[Trigorin]

I think you might just want to rewrite it.

[RachelReaper]

okay :)