middleofsomewhere | What their Eyes See: Conclusion

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What their Eyes See: Conclusion

The End?

The Voidtreckers make their way through the circles. Some pressing forwards, others gathering civilians and evacuating them back to the city. Some get lost, stuck among dreams or nightmares.

Those voidtreckers who manage to press on through the third circle will find themselves surrounded by colours, the same colourful almost-lightning that had crackled overhead as they made their way through the maze. Here the colours are thick, swirling. Getting close is almost like getting close to a bonfire. It is not heat but power, something no Voidtrecker can withstand.

Something no creature could withstand yet for those that risk the blinding colouful light they will see a shape. A person? Perhaps. It shifts shape, never still. Thick multicoloured veins run over it. It is hard to focus on, just trying to look into the colours is difficult.

"Fine. Fine. Fine."

It is not just those in the centre who hear the voice but everyone. As if it is speaking directly into their minds.

Indeed for any Voidtreckers who are with civilians, those in the city do not seem to react, as if they cannot hear it at all.

"I know where I'm not wanted. I'll go. I'll go. But know this. KNOW THIS."

For those in the centre the colours seem to pulsate, enough to cause anyone looking at them a headache if they don't avert their eyes.

"I know you now. I will find a place. I WILL FIND A HOME and you will pay. YOU WILL NOT STOP ME. I know you all. I know your souls and you will WEEP BEFORE MY MAJESTY."

The colours seem to erupt, dazzling anyone close enough to see and then they vanish. It all vanishes. The maze, the circles, the illusions. Those inside the maze or the circles still will find themselves stood in the smog, outside the city. Those in the centre of the circle will find themselves in fog, unconscious citizens scattered around them.

Clean Up

It takes a few hours for the last of the civilians to be found and returned to the city, once again the hospitals are full but it seems the quick action of the Voidtreckers prevented any fatalities.

The city bounces back quickly, the people shaken but not broken, not bowed. Any help the Voidtreckers offer will be accepted but it quickly becomes clear that the illusions are gone. No more creatures, no more strange images. The fighting rings have paused for now, as they take stock and try and understand what had happened.

But after a couple of hours all Voidtreckers get a message on their SCA. All teams to return to the Voidtrecker Express.

Their maps will pin point the station, which is luckily a lot quieter with everyone still coming to terms with what has happened. The Voidtrecker Express is there and once all passengers have boarded it flies off, into the void once more.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Well.

At least he has a good idea who's behind this door. Vexen will hear a light rap, and, softly;

"Even. If this is you in here, may I come in?"

There's a moment of no response, before cracks suddenly form in the ice. It shatters, leaving the door clear...aside from crunchy slush on the floor, at least.

Inside, the room is cold enough that Ansem will be able to see his own breath, although Vexen's is barely visible as he sits with his back to the door.

That- certainly confirms his suspicion. After a moment of staring at the door, Ansem draws in a breath, adjusts his scarf, and steps within. He's wearing the orange hoodie, but it's still enough to immediately chill him within it; nonetheless, sighting Even, if he had any thoughts of commenting upon it such thoughts are gone. Instead he stands for a moment more, then takes a slow seat on the opposite bench.

Seconds pass. It's not an...uncomfortable silence, but neither it is a welcome one. Finally, he speaks, voice soft.

"I never did ask you, which you preferred. Even, or...Vexen."

It's been over two months since he was first asked that question, and it feels like in that time, he's only gotten more conflicted on it. On Erda, it had very much been Vexen who had helped fight off the demons. Even was a scientist, not a warrior. If he'd never become Vexen, it was likely that he would never have learned to fight effectively enough to have made a difference.

But here...Even would not have become the puppet of an illusion Xehanort. He wouldn't have succumbed to the darkness buried deep within him and turned on his fellow passengers. And if he'd never become Vexen, it's likely Ansem wouldn't have pushed him away in the illusion of Radiant Garden.

"I...am as yet unsure. The name 'Vexen' has quite heavily mixed connotations, and they seem to be growing ever more conflicted."

A slow nod - not that Vexen can see it - and just as quietly, "Then, if it's all right with you- I would like to continue calling you 'Even' until such a time as you ask me to not."

Another stretch of silence, and then he clears his throat- this part, the most important.

"I would...also like to apologize for pushing you away. You did not deserve such cruelty when you were only trying to help, and I..." he trails off for a moment, closes his eyes with a sigh, and then continues; "I was overcome by my own need to keep hold of the lies that I was being fed. And the thought of you taking them from me became...unbearable."

It is not an excuse. There is no excuse. He was harsh, and he was selfish.

He does glance over, only to shake his head.

"Coming from one who was a part of my original life, it does not feel so inappropriate to be addressed as though I still had some part of it to claim. But, my lord...you have been far kinder to me, overall, than I deserve. You were fully within your rights to be so curt."

"No. No, I was not, not when it has been made clear to me that you would not so much as think of laying a hand upon me." Not in anger, not in fear; not even to defend himself, had Ansem thought himself in danger. He swallows just imagining it, but...does not mention such a thing. "You have friends, family who speak only well of you and your character, to say nothing of what assistance you have granted to me directly. There was no reason for me to think that you were there to take anything from me, and yet I did not question it when the thought entered my mind.

"I wronged you, there, and I am sorry." And that's that.

"Perhaps no recent reason, but I have betrayed you harshly in the past. The apology I have offered you is hardly evidence I would not do so again."

After all, he's become quite the actor and liar in his time with the Organizations, both new and old. If he wanted to, he could give nearly everyone on the train a false impression of who he really is.

"Nevertheless, I cannot deny that it hurt when you spurned my efforts to help, and I accept your apology."

"You have," Ansem acknowledges. "And I will not forget that. But," he continues, "you are not the only one who has done wrong. And we cannot guarantee we will not hurt others in the future, unintentionally or not. But we can always seek to make amends." A slight tilt of his head as acknowledgement of the acceptance, a ghost of a smile...and then it fades.

"I remember more. Encountering those sights...chased away many of the shadows, though I think many still remain." His eyes close, briefly. "You are not the only one whom has been the target of my cruelty. Roxas and Namine..."

Regret is clear in his voice. Especially since he understands more, now, of how cruel he was.

"It sounds as though your recollections have not been entirely pleasant." Not that it makes them any less important. Remembering one's regrets is necessary for personal growth, and forgetting mistakes means you may well just make them again. "As I said before, I know nothing of your interactions with those two, only that you have done enough wrong by them that you would make atonement your life's purpose."

"Namine...I used as a tool. A means of revenge against the Organization, once I pulled her from their clutches- and then sought to dispose of her when I was finished." Disgust is clear in his voice. "Roxas...only a means to revive Sora. Trapped in a false world as his very memories crumbled to pieces about him."

"I hate you so much."
"You should share some of that hatred with Sora. He's far too nice for his own good."

Eyes open, but his gaze is down. "To use children in such a way, to consider them less than people...I ruined their lives, in my quest to avenge myself. I cannot begin to think how much darkness was in my heart, to allow myself to follow such a path."

"You were...not the only one to consider Nobodies to not truly be people. Xemnas went to great effort to convince us that we were merely empty shells, so adept at pretending to be people that we might even fool ourselves on occasion. You are not the only one to have mistreated Namine, and I am certain that it was only my limited interactions with Roxas that prevented me from visiting cruelty upon him, as well."

Namine...it seems everyone around her had tried to use her for her power. He can only hope that she has a better life now, freed from the Organization. He takes a deep breath at the thought, and reaches to place a hand on Ansem's shoulder.

"But you shall have your opportunity to atone. The very reason I rejoined the Organization was to perfect my work of the last decade, the Replica Project. With it, I have created bodies that, with the addition of a living heart, are functionally identical to human. Roxas and Namine can coexist with Sora and Kairi."

Neither of them deserved it, he doesn't need to say. None of them. And it hardly makes him feel better to know that Xemnas treated his own in such a way; indeed, to be compared to the man makes him slightly ill. He lets out a breath of his own, looking up as Even reaches across.

And then...he blinks.

"You...found a way to bring them back?"

"With some help from your records, in the case of Roxas. The data you compiled on his heart and memories were so detailed that we were able to prepare the vessel and call to his heart from an entirely separate world. It was quite a marvel to behold, and I say as much as someone who has replicated hearts in the past."

He catches himself dangerously close to a tangent, and awkwardly clears his throat to force himself back on topic.

"We have no such advantage with Namine, but so long as Kairi returned safely from confronting Xehanort's new Organization, we will have everything we need to restore her to life, as well."

He...did what?

That part of his memories has clearly escaped him; Ansem looks bewildered, to say the least, as he processes this information. That he had the foresight to prepare that information, even perhaps knowing it may never be able to be used- and yet it was, and Even.

Even found a way.

Ansem cannot speak for the moment, a hand covering his mouth, clearly overcome. But can he be blamed? Here and now, he had no idea where to even start, what he could possibly even think of doing- and here is Even telling him that what surely must have been a ghost of a belief has found solid ground.

He can tell Ansem needs a moment, and lets him have it. It's a solid half a minute before he speaks again, during which the room slowly starts to warm up.

"I cannot yet be certain how well their Replica bodies will fare in the long run, but I have saved all of my notes from the development process, should it be necessary to make any modifications."

He reaches into his coat pocket and produces a notebook, thickened with sticky notes, stapled in pages, and haphazardly glued progress photos. All of it is written in a hand that is somehow both cramped and scrawling, making liberal use of shorthand notation that Ansem may find very familiar.

Ansem takes the notes with shaking hands, looking through it slowly. After another half minute, he finds the words to speak. "You cannot grasp what this means to me," he rasps, voice so very rough with emotion. "In the dark, gazing by the water, feeling myself slip away- it came to the point where all I could remember that I had wronged others. I could not remember their names, only that I had committed grievous harm- and I knew that so long as I was trapped in that place, there was no chance of being able to atone."

He swallows thickly, looking up.

"With what good is in these papers- what work you have performed for me, even if you did not realize it- how can you say you deserve anything but my gratitude? Even..."

Ansem sets down the notebook and reaches to take Even's shoulder, to pull him close enough to embrace tightly. And whether or not Even is able to process he's just been - well, hugged - Ansem is moving to press lips at the other man's forehead.

"For what you have done to me, for what harm you have caused me- I forgive you. You still bear the burden of absolution, but my forgiveness, you have earned."

It's clear from the way he tenses that he was not expecting a hug, much less the forehead kiss. The latter gesture, he was only aware of between adults as a gesture of respect for a knight acting in one's service, and he...he is hardly a knight. He's done nothing but fail and betray the people who thought they could rely on him, or try desperately to make up for having done as much. As for the former...if he'd been flustered by how personal it felt to have Ansem tending to his injuries, this sends his mind into an embarrassed panic. It takes several moments for his brain to reboot, at which point he squirms to try to turn enough away that Ansem won't be able to see his face turning bright red. The red of his ears, however, is hard to miss, as they stick out past his hair despite his efforts to downplay them.

"I...surely this does not outweigh my betrayal, particularly as I owe Namine a debt of my own."

Vexen isn't held in place; Ansem allows him to turn away, slowly pulling back. The pink of his ears is noticed, and just as much unremarked upon. If anything, it affirms to Ansem that his Apprentice needed those words, needed that forgiveness even if he cannot yet accept it.

"Forgiveness is mine alone to grant," he observes, "and I cannot hold anger in my heart towards you, not any longer. Given your actions, and the fact...you had already had something important taken from you, that perhaps could have made all the difference."

His Heart, that is.

"And as I said," Ansem continues, a hand moving to Even's shoulder, "atonement remains your burden. However, I believe you are in a state to judge whether or not you have achieved it on your own, without my observation." The smile on his face grows a bit softer, as does his voice. "I spoke with Yondu, in the midst of those circles, and he shared with me his wisdom. And so, Even, if you cannot accept my forgiveness...accept that I grant you a second chance, and that I expect you to live up to it."

While there's a bit of a tease in his voice, Ansem is quite serious in this regard. And gazing at Even like this...he has the impulse to turn him back to meet his gaze, but he also senses that it would be a bit...too much right now. Perhaps in more than one way.

(Such brings a feeling of deja vu, but- now is not the time.)

He takes a deep breath before responding, still turned away to hide a blush that his ears betray regardless.

"...Thank you, my lord. Though I have wronged a great many people, it is my betrayal of you and of the people of Radiant Garden that weigh most heavily on my heart, even in its current, diminished capacity."

"Then let what weight remains urge you forwards, rather than hold you back. That is all I could ask of you." Ansem- can't help but give a final squeeze to that shoulder before letting go. "I dearly wish to see my home and its people again, with my own eyes, and know that it is not an illusion- were you able to help me achieve that as well, then I would be overjoyed, indeed."

He still has a flustered blush on his face as he turns, now with a faint, knowing smirk.

"In my own timeline, I was able to rescue you and see you safely back home. I do not know for certain if I will be able to affect when you are able to leave this train or where it leaves you afterward, I can say with confidence that you will not be abandoned to the darkness."

At that...a smile tugs at his lips. Then, a chuckle. And by the last words sinking in...Ansem is shaking his head in wonder, eyes closed once more with emotion.

"Then, if such is the case- I will wait with a heart knowing there is at least one out there whom would guide me as a beacon guides ships home."

He's already done that, in a sense. Through helping Ansem regain his memories, through everything else.

"Ienzo, Aeleus, and Dilan are waiting for you, as well. But Braig..."

His expression darkens, the red of his cheeks now from anger rather than embarrassment. Unlike his usual frustrated outbursts, his tone is brutally cold.

"He chose to rejoin Xehanort, and knew of his manipulations, perhaps even from the start."

"Braig."

Eyes open slowly, as if sensing the change of expression. The tone, at least, is clear- and Ansem is silent as he digests this.

"Such a thing," he finally says, "is the true betrayal. I am...disappointed that I misjudged him so." Though- there is some conflict in his memories, with Braig's behavior. It it simply that he is still missing pieces?...

A prickle creeps up his neck, one he cannot simply attribute to the cold. Ansem lets out a breath and moves to sit back down.

What their Eyes See: Conclusion

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