Empty Threats(Saix)

[Xemnas]

Where nothing gathered.

The room truly represented the Nobodies that it held, though at this very moment it only contained a single empty being. Thirteen chairs circled around the chamber, though none of them sat at the same height. Xemnas made it clear who was the most effective, who had earned the most in the Organization. Each of them had their use, but the motivation that feeling weak would bring them was them was invaluable, it was nothing more than a means to make them into sharper tools. The Superior could not afford for the Nobodies of XIII to be useless, and he sought to motivate them to be otherwise. It was no simple matter, all Nobodies were composed of nothing, but still each of them held their own quirks and personalities, their own past lives to cling to. Each one of them required a different form of motivation, a different reason to be loyal.

For the most part power was able to keep them in line, the power that Xemnas held was enough to make them hesitate when it came to being anything but loyal. Some Nobodies believed themselves to be clever enough to avoid a direct confrontation with Xemnas, to out smart and defeat him by means other than beating him down with their own hands. It was weak, it was pathetic, but it was also to be commended. Xemnas did not wish to deal with mutiny, but he could not help but think that the line of thinking that these Nobodies on the verge of betraying the Organization were holding. If one did not hold the power required to vanquish one's foe, than defeating them by other means was a logical decision. Of course, Xemnas did not lack the power to destroy any of his enemies by his own hand, but striking down those that opposed him openly would gain him nothing, it would only prove to be a detriment to his plans.

And so the leader of Organization XIII sent out a call to one single Nobody. There were few that could be trusted, if trust was even remotely possible for a being without emotion, to aid in the execution of such a plan. Saix, the Lunar Diviner, was one of those few Nobodies, and most of all he was at the top of the list as far as loyalty went. When it came to the other Nobodies there were always flaws that held them from reaching their true potential in serving the Organization. False pride, apathy, a hunger for power that surpassed their ability to gain what it was that they desired. Saix possessed the least of these flaws, and the most strengths that suited what it was Xemnas required. And so the Superior sat in his chair, the tallest of them all, and awaited the arrival of his subordinate.

[Saïx]

There was no point, Saïx thought, in placing proof of one's own existence in a world that didn't exist. But none of them were honestly guilty of that; the Proofs, like the rest of the World that Never Was, simply seemed to occur. Saïx didn't know the specifics and he didn't ask. He only noticed, wryly, that they took on the form of doors, leading to shifting places that seemed to change with the Nobodies they represented--which was little. It made him wonder about the extent of Xemnas's control over Nothingness. Limitless was the general consensus, but if Never Was conformed to the individual as willingly as the Superior, perhaps there was potential there.

Not that Saïx need worry about any of that as long as Xemnas remained in power, the whole of Never Was serving as his shimmering Proof of Existence.

Speaking of whom, Saïx felt the pull of that will more distinctly than any pseudo-feeling he could possibly delude himself into recognizing, as undeniable as breath and inevitable as the slow trudge of time. His presence wasn't just desired, it was demanded, and every moment he wasted extracting himself from his own post-mission pursuits would be noticed.

So Saïx wasted none, allowing the darkness to claim him where he stood and uncurl from his throne with its otherworldly hum. He sat in his usual slouch, deceptively slack and disarmingly juxtaposed against the otherwise conservatively crossed legs and hands resting demurely on one knee. It was a very closed position that invited underestimation, but could also serve as a sullen shield for one plagued with emotions--as Saïx planned to be. "You called, Superior?" he asked simply, his tone bare of the drawling sarcasm or curt bitterness that might have escaped a more inconvenienced or less prudent member than himself, and emotionless gold eyes sought Xemnas's.

[Xemnas]

The room that contained only one being never meant to exist soon held a second, the only other Nobody that Xemnas would consider discussing what he was about to say with. A good deal of the Nobodies in Oganization XIII were plagued by faults, weakness, fake emotions, their own vendettas. Xemnas knew that the Lunar Diviner was not the epitome of emptiness that he was, but VII was certainly held in higher esteem than the others. In the task that Xemnas commonly gave Saix he was the best suited, and the Organization held no Nobody more capable of addressing the rest of the heartless souls when Xemnas was otherwise preoccupied.

The Lunar Diviner addressed Xemnas without emotion, asking only a simple question. His tone was lacking that which had been used against the Superior in the past, and though Xemnas was willing to allow some Nobodies believe that they held the power to even slightly rebel against their leader, he was not willing to allow this disrespect to continue on into more mutinous acts. "You have noticed our ranks hold comrades who seek to upset the balance of power?" The question was simple, clear, impossible to misunderstand. Xemnas sought to address those Nobodies that did not hold faith in the Superior's ability to lead, or perhaps their appetite for power was simply too great for their own good.

Xemnas had no doubts that Saix had picked up on the possibility of betrayal, and so he did not bother giving the Lunar Diviner much time to answer. "XI and XII are not completely useless to us regardless of their intentions. Quite the contrary, I believe that it is their desire for my position that will make their presence in this Organization legitimate." The Superior waved his hand, summoning the image of a castle for Saix to view, though this was not the Castle That Never Was. "Do you recall the Nobody that we discovered, one who was undeserving of a place in our order?"

[Saïx]

Xemnas, of course, got straight to the point without preamble--though he did lend enough ambiguity to his words to put Saïx on his guard. "Comrades seeking to upset the balance of power" made him think for one blackened second of Axel, and his jaw tightened in preparation for the order that would seal his fate--or perhaps Saïx's, if Axel had been questioned or Xemnas found fault with what favor the Luna Diviner had gained thus far.

And then the Superior marked neither of them, but the more obvious targets of Marluxia and Larxene, and Saïx inwardly berated himself for miscalculating so thoroughly.

"Oblivion," he murmured in recognition when Xemnas called up the image of the castle--but perhaps it was also a quiet appraisal of the fate that he narrowly escaped within his own mind and the one that Marluxia now faced. He knew the castle too well from too many searches for a room that didn't seem to exist, even in memory, and the mention of the girl whose sandal-clad footsteps echoed in the empty hallways brought the thought--unbidden--of the one in black whose high-heeled boots made soft staccato raps on stairs that never were.

His lip curled faintly. I don't think I could forget either of them if I tried.

"You speak of Naminé," he said to Xemnas instead in confirmation, casting his eyes over the castle as if he expected to see her in one of the windows. "Do you intend to make her one of us?"

It was an honest question. Saïx didn't see yet the connection between the traitors and this seemingly useless waif, but he knew that Naminé held untapped power that was not yet completely understood. Knowing Xemnas, the Superior had designed a way to thrust these two elements at one another like fighting dogs that would destroy each other. But as helpless as she was, Naminé was already far more qualified to wear the cloak than Xion would ever be. And so for the moment this was the closest Saïx would come to voicing his discontent.