New Life {CLOSED}

[Lixon]

Lixon was dreaming about when she first got her new name. She watched in amazement as her original name, 'Loni' Whirled around her lit up. She saw an 'x' join the letters and when it stopped, it read, 'Lixon'. She looked up at Saix and he explained that that was her new name and what was to be expected of her in the organization. When she was lead into a Dark Corridor and into the meeting room, Lixon woke up to reality. She sighed and stood up, stretching the soreness of her training yesterday with Marluxia. She headed out of her room to the lobby when she noticed no one in the room.

Lixon walked over to where Saix usually stood and saw a sign that read 'No Missons Today. VACATION.' She didn't understand what a vacation was yet since she never had one. Frustrated, she turned and stalked back down the hallway, looking for anyone to explain what a 'vacation' was. Lixon wasn't paying attention to where she was going and turned another corner when she rammed right into someone. Expecting to be scolded, she spoke quickly and quietly.

"I'm sorry! I'm so sorry!" She said frantically.

[Xemnas]

The atmosphere was dark, thick with something akin to dread, despair even. Rain splashed heavily against the the outside, but it was not the outside that this Nobody stood in. The windows moaned from their eternal abuse, but they would hold as they had always held. The World That Never Was remained static, always the same, though the Superior expected as much from a world that was never meant to exist. How such a thing had come into being, or lack of, was beyond even the leader of Organization XIII, who held knowledge of a great many mysteries. It was a world made for their kind, for nothings that mourned the loss of their hearts, or perhaps the nothings were made for that world. The mysteries of The World That Never Was were of secondary importance to that of Xemnas' goals, but they were mysteries that the Superior would unravel one day should he obtain the chance.

As was per usual the castle was for the most part empty, though Xemnas could sense the presence of a few comrades. The Organization was busy, busier than ever now that they held a Keyblader in their ranks. Each member was assigned to some sort of task, and only rarely did on receive a break from daily missions. Breaks had become more and more rare in the past few days, as the Heartless had seemingly lost control. The creatures had been mindless and frenzied to begin with, but now they were attacking everything in sight, not only those that they dubbed to have a strong enough heart. Something had gone wrong, or perhaps something had gone right. Were the Heartless backed into a corner? Was their survival instinct bringing them to feed their ranks as swiftly as possible? Over inflation was dangerous to the worlds and those who held hearts, but in the end it could very much prove to be the Heartless' undoing. Was it possible for their numbers to run dry, or were their numbers as eternal as nothingness?

The monotony of his own thoughts were broken as a Nobody, one who believed themselves worthy to wear the Organization's cloak, walked into Xemnas as they turned a corner. The Superior looked at the girl indifferently for a moment, she was not nearly as fascinating as the other members that the Organization held. Did she posses any particular powers that placed her apart? Xemnas did not believe that she did, or they had no surfaced. Nobodies were not known to gain their powers at a delayed rate, but the rules of nothingness were fuzzy at best. Xemnas said nothing in response to her hurried apologies, finding it pathetic that she would worry over something so meaningless. He allowed the silence to stretch on for a moment more, studying the girl before breaking it with his emotionless voice.

"Do you belong here?"

[Lixon]

Lixon looked up at the person she ran into and almost choked. It was the Superior she had run into. She was in for it now. Lixon groaned mentally and replied quietly, looking up at him since he was so tall.

"There's a sign in the Lobby that says there's a vacation, but I don't know what a vacation is, I've never had one that I know of." She said, keeping her voice steady.

She slowly grew used to being near his commanding presence and relaxed only the slightest. Lixon had only met him once, and she hadn't even spoken to him directly. Her hood suddenly fell down, revealing her sapphire and ruby eyes, shining slightly in the light. Lixon never really took a good look at him before, but knew she was so short compared to him. She didn't dare speak again, for she was afraid that he might punish her.

[Xemnas]

The question had been misunderstood, neglected even. The girl had looked at Xemnas and had decided that his words were not worth responding to. The Superior was not annoyed, nor would he be even if emotion was a factor. The girl was naive, though that was a trait that all of the Organization's recent recruits seemed to share. It was expected from Roxas, so long as you looked at who his somebody was. The Key of Destiny was a rarity though, almost completely unique if it was not for Xemnas' involvement in the situation. That had nothing to do with this Nobody, Xemnas could not even see an overall plan for her in the Organization. But the Superior was resourceful, she would have her uses and it would only be a matter of time until they became clear to him. Xemnas was in the habit of picking and choosing for his Organization, accepting what he felt was the best.

Obviously a mistake had been made.

Xemnas gave a wave of his hand, one of his many dramatic gestures that were common place for the Superior. "You misunderstand the question." Xemnas motioned towards the cloak that the girl paraded around in, as if she had earned it. "We have entertained your facade as a member of this Organization, but what for?" Xemnas looked down on the Nobody, as she was much shorter than he was. "Do you believe that possessing an X in your name makes you one of us? You do not even hold a title, nor do you own a rank. Clinging to that cloak does not make you worthy, and I have seen no proof to indicate that you are deserving of the meaningless position that you hold." Xemnas stood straight and gave off the appearance that caused his title as Superior to truly fit him.

"So tell me, do you belong here?"

[Lixon]

Lixon didn't know how to respond. If she did have a heart, she would have flipped out on him, but she just flinched slightly at how even more commanding he was now.

"Of course I belong here! I'm not some pathetic, weak person that thinks she's good enough to wear this cloak, I wear this for a reason, not just for some title." She said, a bit of her personality from when she was human showing through.

She looked back at him, trying to match his confidence. Lixon was determined to show the Superior that she deserved this cloak, one way or another.

[Saïx]

Vacation.

Saïx detested vacations, or pretended to. An utter waste of time designed to appease an Organization that could not be appeased, not as long as Kingdom Hearts was still nothing more than sheaves of papers covered in diagrams and tottering calculations. But Saïx knew better than to question Xemnas, and given the recent rise in member injury combined with an influx of new material from Twilight Town that the more scientific-minded were likely to peruse in their spare time anyway, perhaps a day off would ultimately make the Organization run more smoothly. Or perhaps a fire in the laboratory would evict them from the castle for a few days and lose them precious time. It wasn't up to Saïx.

On his way past the Grey Area, the Luna Diviner discovered belatedly that opening a portal to his quarters from his Proof of Existence wouldn't have been all that hard in retrospect. It would have at least spared him this, the sight of the Superior speaking with...who? One of the newer members who might as well be nameless aside from the Keybearer himself.

"Of course I belong here! I'm not some pathetic, weak person that thinks she's good enough to wear this cloak, I wear this for a reason, not just for some title."

Oh. Joy.

Xemnas's expression of faraway puzzlement told Saïx everything he needed to know. Either her response was to some question that held deeper significance or Xemnas had honestly mistaken her for an impostor--which, considering her haughty attitude towards the leader of the Organization, Saïx didn't consider completely beyond the realm of possibility.

The diviner decided disciplinary measures were in order.

But first, deference.

"Superior," he greeted Xemnas with an incline of his head when he drew close enough, and then abruptly rounded on the one with her toes out of line, expression souring. "Pardon the intrusion, but I couldn't help overhearing your unfounded claim. Perhaps you could be so accommodating as to elaborate, or at the very least--" His hand fisted in the hood at the nape of her neck and with a dismissive shove he thrust her to her knees at her superior's feet. "Show the leader of Organization XIII the proper respect."

[Xemnas]

Nothing left a sour taste in the Superior's mouth quite like disrespect.

Forget that Xemnas himself deserved such a thing, forget that he held enough power to crush this Nobody without a tenth of his abilities. Xemnas asked that the only thing that was remembered was that this was an Organization, his Organization. Xemnas worked to make the Organization appear a democracy so that his fellow Nobodies would believe that they held power over the direction it was going, but in the end it was a pure dictatorship. Few of the Nobodies truly realized that, but those that did held the most, or the least, respect for Xemnas. Saix understood, he knew who truly guided the ranks, he knew who was in control. Xemnas favored Saix for this reason, and several others. This impudent Nobody that stood in front of him did not understand these things, did not even come close. Even the ones who did not respect him respected themselves enough to fear him, or perhaps to respect his power.

This one had all but asked for Xemnas to strike her down.

Fortunately for this Nobody Saix had appeared, becoming her savior and disciplinarian at the same time. Xemnas returned Saix's acknowledgment, waiting expectantly for the Lunar Diviner to take matters into his own hands. The Superior was not incompetent, but sometimes it took more than power and position to show that one deserved respect. Sometimes it took the presence of another, one who gave Xemnas what he required, if not what he deserved. It pleased the Superior, as much as any being without heart could be pleased, to see offender dropped to her knees in a display of domination. Xemnas said nothing for a few moments, allowing the full situation to sink into her, so that she would realize the mistake that she had made. There were few tools when it came to teaching a Nobody how to act accordingly; pain being one of the most prominent. Xemnas did not resort to physical punishment often, and though he believed that this Nobodies transgressions were grave that did not mean he would not elevate the situation to that, at least not yet.

"You understand nothing of being Nobody. Your existence is pathetic, your reasons for donning that cloak meaningless. You are worthless to this Organization as long as you cling to this false sense of superiority. You deserve nothing because you have earned nothing." Xemnas paused, giving the Nobody an opportunity to prove even more disrepectful, and in turn prove to be even more useless.

[Lixon]

Lixon didn't show anything of her former life anymore, she didn't even raise her head as she was shoved to her knees. She saw truth in the Superior's words; She has no reason to exist, so why did they make her; to have someone else to kick around?

"I'm sorry, Superior, I forgot my place." Lixon said, ice dripping from every sylable.

She didn't show it, but underneath her long bangs her eyes blazed with fury. If she was strong enough, she would have said more, but Lixon held her tounge as she was degraded even more. She wanted to add 'If I'm so useless, then why did you let me in in the first place?!' All Lixon wanted to do right now was get as far away from here as possible and maybe never come back. She let the silence stretch on unbearably as she waited for their response.

[Saïx]

Xemnas made the situation instantly clear. Every Nobody entered the Organization with the understanding that they were not special. They did not stand apart from the whole. The Organization was not assembled to serve them, but they to serve it--to serve Xemnas, the embodiment of their combined strength and the sole wielder of its true force. They may be made up of bits and pieces, jangling awkwardly at one another and all complete with their own motivations apart from Xemnas's, but in the end he was the one whose hand wielded the ephemeral power of Nothingness. And they were but Nothing.

This wretched child was incapable of that understanding.

She saw nothing more and nothing less than a unity of people. As Xemnas had stated, the concept of Nobody did not mean oblivion to her--it meant something. He could hear it in her voice when she addressed Xemnas again, both fearless and stupid enough to foster an almost venomous tone. This girl felt that she had something to prove. She believed that she was someone Xemnas might find worthy. Important.

No such qualities existed in her. She was Nobody. Nothingness could crush her without a second thought, make her already nonexistent identity disperse in a heartbeat, with a single command from Xemnas.

Foolish.

"Then to refresh your memory, you will be relieving the Dusks of their cleaning duties at the lavatories for the next week." His lips quirked slightly in a parody of amusement that he wasn't completely able to hide from Xemnas. "You should be grateful to your Superior for sparing you from a position in their ranks after such a tawdry display." He didn't outright order her to voice her thanks, deciding to wait and see if it was necessary. Spare the rod, spoil the child, yes--but until Saïx knew the depth of her stubbornness, he didn't see the point of being redundant.

Assuming she existed (or rather, didn't) that long.

[Xemnas]

The Organization was a machine, a work of cogs and gears. The Nobodies that made it up were what kept it running, but at the same time they also tore it apart. Some of the members, while useful, were dangerous to the well being of the Organization in general. Some of them sought to destroy the status quo, to become Superior of nothing but a pile of rubble. These Nobodies Xemnas had plans for, but the girl standing in front of him was not one of these. She was a different kind of disruptor, one who believed she held noble intentions, morals even. Xemnas had no use for them, as he believed that such things were for those of heart. Morals would ruin the Organization, would cause the gears to rust and fall apart. Xemnas could not allow that to happen, too much had been accomplished for it all to fail because some Nobodies clung to the remnants of their hearts.

And thus those that walked the moral high ground would be forced to change, or walk no more.

The girls tone was cold, she had something to prove. Did she want to make Xemnas believe she was worthy? Worthy of what? His favor? The Organization was an extension of himself, and Xemnas did not favor a particular part of his being. Instead he found that some parts were better suited than others for certain tasks. One did not favor their feet when they were forced to pluck fruit from the vine, or so that was how Xemnas saw it. Some parts were not fit to remain attached to the main host, for they were too cancerous to remain. This girl, was she a black and withered digit unfit to remain? Xemnas toyed with the thought of amputating her from the main body, of removing her from the equation. But it was too early to make such a choice, Xemnas would not deprive himself of possible potential under such casual circumstances.

That was assuming that she had the strength of will to survive the tests that she would face; that Xemnas would put her through. Each of Organization XIII's Nobodies had been tried again and again, forced to their breaking point, past that point even. Weakness could not be afforded, a statement that Xemnas had stressed to those Nobodies who were truly interested in the furthering of the Organization's goal, and in turn the recapturing of their hearts. Those that did not care, or had other motives, would be taken care of in due time. Perhaps this girl, this nothing, would rise above the weakness that she had shown this day, but Xemnas did not expect as much. He foresaw only failure, but Xemnas held expectations for the Organization as a whole, not the individual gears that it was made up of. Losses could be afforded, the Superior knew this to be truth.

Xemnas exchanged a glance with Saix, noting the Lunar Diviner's brief expression of amusement. A week of cleaning was hardly true punishment, but it would serve as a suitable lesson. The girl would be required to throw aside her pride, to break her ego, to feel demeaned so much that she did not even feel human. Because she was not, she was nothing, a shell, an imitation of life. Until this realization was within her grasp she would not prove useful to Xemnas, she would only bring down the Organization as a whole. The Superior could not allow that, and so like her existence her sacrifice would mean nothing. Xemnas looked down at the still bowed form of the Nobody, knowing her to be a fool if she believed that the Superior could not see the imitation of emotion that she was indulging in. Their ridicule had fueled a passion that could not exist in her, another weakness.

"I believe that this one has earned one thing today; a title." If Xemnas was one to pretend, as did many of the Nobodies of Organization XIII, he would have added the mockery he intended this to bring. The monotone voice betrayed nothing, and the silence left in the wake of his declaration would do little to clarify the statement he had made. "Rise, and be known as the Empty Promise." Xemnas made a motion with his hand to join in his order for her to stand, though she had not truly earned the right to do anything but kneel in the presence of her superiors. The title was ridicule, meant to antagonize the Nobody more than anything else. But in that Xemnas intended something more, a motivation of sorts. Perhaps the Nobody will earn a new title, if Xemnas saw fit.

[Lixon]

Lixon rose quickly as soon as she heard the word. She listened for a second as she heard her title, immediately telling it was meant to ridicule her, and she suppressed a scoff. For her reply, she removed any 'emotion' she held in her gaze and tone and spoke.

"Thank you, Superior, I'm grateful I do not have a worse punishment befalling me." Lixon said, expressionless.

Lixon bowed once to Xemnas and turned to leave, purposely avoiding Saix's gaze. She still kept her determination to prove she was somebody so she would run off and just prove to Xemnas that she was worthless and a waste of time. Lixon exhaled in she supposed was relief and started to walk away.