Slowly, Xemnas starts to lower towards the ground, finally landing on his feet by Vanitas. He stares down at his lifeless body, a scoff escaping his lips.
"Give it up, Xemnas. Your men are all gone," Riku points out.
"Not even Zexion's here to help," Reno adds.
Xemnas' eyes stay on Vanitas' form, refusing to meet anyone else's gaze.
"That's because he failed his mission. I had him terminated," Xemnas mutters, and you feel another stab at your heart. Just how many more people had to die for this man's twisted fantasy? "Though, they're not all gone. I still have another left to fight for me."
As soon as the last word leaves his mouth a familiar, girlish giggle fills the air around you. Your eyes narrow, wondering just why it sounds so known, but as you try to swivel your head around, you can't. You're frozen to the spot, unable to move. Suddenly, a dark, swirling portal appears in front of you, and out of the darkness walks an Organization member. The hood of her coat is down, revealing long, [opposite h/c] hair and blue eyes that are so dark they're almost black. A smile grows on her face as she stops in front of you, and a wave of nausea washes over you.
"Hello there, [Name]," she greets with a tilt of her head, running a finger down your slightly parted lips. "I've been just dying to met you!"
Your Nobody releases a shrill laugh, and your blood runs cold. Truthfully, you're downright terrified. This girl had been personally trained by Vanitas, and the odds of her having the compassion of Roxas and Axel are slim-to-none.
"Is that..." Riku mutters, watching in horror.
"Two [Name]s?" Zack finishes.
Your Nobody smiles, glancing between the two guys before turning her attention back to you.
"They're not very bright, are they?" she asks in a low whisper. "I wonder why you like them... I mean yeah, they're cute, but..."
She trails off, her eyes landing on the figure on the other side of the platform. You recognize the look flashing on her face; pain.
"He's dead?" she adds, the cocky tone gone from her voice as she continues to stare at Vanitas. Your dry eyes blink, and you realize with a sigh that you're able to move again. "... Damn. I actually liked him, in a twisted, messed up kind of way."
"He told me you were annoying," you speak up, fear ebbing away and replaced by hatred. How dare she control you, dismiss your friends?
Her eyes dart up to you, practically smoldering with anger.
"Did he now?" she repeats, taking a step towards you. "Alright then... What should I say about you? Some pathetic girl from some small town, running around with a group of guys? Causing two Nobodies to turn from their destiny, to suffer a life of banishment?"
Her words hurt like knives. Sometimes the truth can be your worst enemy.
"I'm not-"
"Oh save it," she hisses, raising a hand up in the air. Your mouth snaps shut, and she starts to smile again. "I'm sure Roxas can sympathize with me," she muses, glancing over at the glaring blond. "The jealousy a Nobody feels when they watch their Somebody run around, free to love and feel as much as they'd like? It's suffocating."
Shakily, your hand starts to move without free will towards the holster on your pants. Your heart is racing as your fingers clutch the hilt of your sword, pulling it from its sheath and into the air.
"[Name], what are you doing?" you can hear Noctis asks cautiously, but you can't respond.
You're her puppet, powerless against her control.
"Now then, who should we fight first?" your Nobody mutters, glancing around the group of guys. Finally she smiles, twirling her fingers. You follow her movements, turning on your heel so that you're facing the guys. "How poetic. You're up, blondie."
With the grace of a baby elephant you lumber forwards, towards a cautious Roxas. You can barely put one foot in front of the other, your coordination severely depleted.
"[Name]," Roxas mutters, placing his hands in front of his chest as he takes a step backwards.
"Don't bother fighting it," Xemnas' voice booms out. "Our little [Na-x-me] has the ultimate power of manipulation. No one can fight it, especially not a weak human."
"[Name], stop," Roxas tells you, though his two Keyblades appear in his hands as the words escape his mouth.
"I'm... sorry," you gasp out as you lunge forward, your sword clashing with Oblivion.
You glance to the side, realizing that everyone else is standing still, too. They're all frozen to the spot, now under her control.
"Forced to kill the girl who taught you how to love!" your Nobody calls out with a shrieking laugh. "I always love a dramatic ending, don't you?"
Your eyes are drawn to another figure moving towards you, and you just barely manage to move your arm to block Cloud's sword from hitting your back. Wait a second... Why can you move again of your own free will? You look over at your Nobody, who's resting on the railing by Vanitas with a small smirk on her face.
"I like the idea of them killing you much more than you killing them," she announces with a small shrug. "I wonder though, who's going to deal the fatal blow...?"
You grit your teeth in annoyance before hopping out of the way as Reno fires his gun towards you. Landing in a crouched position, you glance around. They're all advancing towards you, except for Xion and Yuffie. Xion is standing still, not even blinking, but you notice that Yuffie is swaying slightly. You tilt your head as you catch her gaze, and she shoots you a sly wink. A smirk grows on your face before you jump back up to your feet, dodging Sora's Keyblade before throwing yourself towards an advancing Zack. Reminding yourself to apologize later you reach out and kick his shin, sending him stumbling backwards. Their actions are sloppy, easy to escape. Her technique is impressive, definitely, but ultimately ineffective.
She might have been trained by Vanitas, but she was far from his protégé. He would never give an enemy such an easy opportunity to find a chink in his armor. You glance towards Yuffie, who has three sharp knives hidden in her palm. She nods, and you start to run towards your Nobody.
"NOW!" you call as you fly through the air, three silver streaks soaring past you.
"What?!" your Nobody hisses, just barely ducking out of the way of Yuffie's knives and towards your approaching form.
"Gotcha," you mutter as you tackle her to the ground.
The two of you tumble back slightly, and her fingernails scratch painfully at your arms as you hold her down beneath you.
"Guess you're not so all-powerful," you chuckle, your hands closing around her neck.
Her eyes narrow as she coughs for air, clawing at your wrists. You release a cry as she leans up, her teeth sinking into your forearm. The grip on her neck loosens enough that she's about to wiggle her arms loose, grabbing you around the middle and rolling over so that she's on top of you. You start to smirk as she straddles you, and her eyes narrow even more.
"Why are you so happy? I've won!" she screams, hands digging into your arms.
"Did you?" you reply, pressing your feet against her chest for emphasis.
Her eyes fly open when she realizes you're tucked into a ball underneath her, readying yourself for your next attack. With the distance between your bodies and the wall... there should be just enough space to complete your move. You shoot her an apologetic look before using all of your leg strength to kick up, kicking her off of you.
She flies backwards, arm flailing in the air as the backs of her knees slam against the railing. The loss of her balance coupled with the momentum of your kick causes her to tumble over the railing of the platform, her screams piercing the sky. Your entire body relaxes, eyes clenching shut as you try to catch your breath. Turns out all of those squats you were forced to do were worth it after all.
"... No," you can hear Xemnas murmur, and your eyes flutter open. He's stumbling back slightly, staring at where your Nobody's body had fallen. "This can't be..."
Slowly, you sit up straight, rubbing the back of your head. You just killed your own Nobody, half of yourself... Just how much lower are you going to be forced to go before this is done?
"It's over, Xemnas," Sora murmurs, pointing his Keyblade at the horrified Nobody.
The silver-haired male's lips curl up in a twisted smirk as he takes a step forward, eyes locked on the frowning brunet. Suddenly, a burst of laughter leaves his lips as he summons a double-edged laser blade in his hands, twirling it a bit.
"Let's end this where it began," Xemnas muses with a tilt of his head. "I want a heart, you want me dead. Whoever survives, wins. Deal?"
"Of course," Sora immediately agrees, and in the blink of an eye he, Roxas, and Xemnas are gone.
A pit of dread gnaws at your stomach as you glance around in horror, moving back towards the group.
"[Name]! That was awesome!" Yuffie gushes, engulfing you in a crushing hug.
"See? Aren't you glad we trained so much?" Leon adds with a small smirk.
You roll your eyes, remembering all of the times you had complained about the grueling training sessions.
"Yeah yeah, whatever, you were right after all," you tease as Yuffie releases you.
"... But what's gonna happen with Sora and Roxas?" Xion asks softly.
The smile is wiped from your face as you glance towards the dark sky, a hand resting on your chest. Your steady heartbeat serves as a peaceful reassurance, of a life beyond this night.
"They're gonna be okay," you reply with a small nod, glancing back towards your friends. "They have to be."
Though everyone nods in agreement, the mood is anything but positive.