Roxas (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
thirteenth_brat) wrote in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png)
wrfmlogsarchive2010-05-12 06:36 pm
thirteenth_brat) wrote in wrfmlogsarchive2010-05-12 06:36 pm
In which Roxas does something stupid and gets his skinny ass into trouble...
Who: Roxas and a couple of NPCs
What: Roxas might be regretting the suggestion to split up and look for others when RG fell...
Where: From around town into the castle's entrance hall
When: The day RG fell, after this thread.
Status: Complete
Note: Long and rambly narrative is long and rambly. Oh and Roxas muse may wish to skin me now.
Splitting up to cover more ground had seemed like a good idea at the time, but the last time Roxas had found himself fighting a large number of Heartless alone there hadn't been any particularly powerful ones in the horde. Now, his search for people needing help getting to the ships to evacuate was running into some serious snags in the form of some of the more powerful common Heartless. Maybe this was a waste. Even if he found anyone, would he be able to provide sufficient cover for them? He doubted it, but he felt he had to try.
However, he didn't seem to be finding anyone at all. Perhaps they had all either made it to the ships or been taken by the Heartless? Whatever the reason, he doubted he could be of any help running around like an idiot searching for people who weren't there to be found. There was also the rather unpleasant thought that a few people he knew had been adamant about staying and trying to stop the world from falling and, now that he thought of it, there was only one place that bunch of idiots might be. Grumbling in frustration, he headed off to the castle. It was risky. They might already be gone from there and he might end up being unable to get to a ship to get off the world. He wasn't too worried about the latter issue. If he was still on the world when it fell, he was probably safe with the Keyblade. Hopefully. If not, he had a damn good reason for taking the risk...
... If he got that far. Just inside the entrance hall, he encountered an unfamiliar face who didn't seem to be overly concerned with the world being consumed by darkness. The dude was scruffy, strawberry blond, roughly six feet in height and seemed mildly amused by what was going on. Roxas guessed the guy to be in his early to mid twenties, though who could be sure? Sometimes people looked younger or older than they really were. Besides his seeming amusement at the situation, the only other clue that the man might just be a villain was a faintly sinister gleam in his gray eyes. Those were the only things. It was kind of hard to see anything sinister in a guy wearing plaid flannel.
“Going somewhere?” he asked, his tone casual, as though there wasn't a world dying around them.
“Not that it's any of your business, but yes,” Roxas replied tersely, “And you ought to be heading for the ships if you want to get off this world before it goes.” There was something so not right with this situation, but Roxas didn't think he really had time to worry about it.
“Really? You... seem to be heading in the wrong direction yourself, Keybearer.”
“I have business in the castle and it's none of yours.” Definitely wrong. Roxas started making small notes of the surroundings. His Keyblades thrummed with energy in a sort of warning. This guy might be looking for a fight. Although, it probably wouldn't be much of a fight. Roxas had a little difficulty believing this guy might be a threat. Seriously? Plaid? Still, a quick glance around would serve well if it came to it. The general destruction in the room meant hazards and possible help. If he did it right, an Aero spell could turn the broken glass lying around into a useful weapon.
“Some friends, maybe?” There was a certain conniving, oily sort of tone that Roxas knew he'd heard somewhere before, even though he knew he didn't know this man. He had heard others speaking in such tones, hinting they knew things they had no intentions of sharing.
“Also none of your business, unless you plan on being a threat to them.” That was probably not the wisest thing to say, but Roxas was touchy about friends, even if he thought they were being incredibly stupid at the moment.
“I don't have any business with your friends. However, I did want to have a word with you.”
“It'll have to wait.” Roxas moved to step by the man, keeping alert for a possible attack. He didn't have time for this. Whatever this idiot was up to, it was not important for the moment, but it was possible he wasn't going to take 'No' for an answer.
It wasn't entirely surprising when he moved to bar Roxas's way.
“I was already denied one chance to speak with you,” the man said, his voice low and holding a mild note of threat, “I'd really rather not wait too much longer.”
“Denied before? When would this have been? Because, you know, I'm pretty sure I don't know you from anywhere.” Roxas had a sneaking suspicion he knew even as the words left his mouth, but he bit back any further comment. It was only a guess, but if he could get this guy to either confirm or deny it without knowing he suspected anything, so much the better.
“You really don't know? Well, we didn't actually see each other then. My associate kind of screwed up, forgetting someone else had left just before you arrived.” The man stuck his hands in his pockets and just stood there, watching Roxas, clearly trying to gauge his response.
Well, that did answer the question a bit more readily than Roxas had expected it to. This guy had been in on the trap in Alexandria. That rankled with Roxas a bit. The Princesses... Kairi. They'd been used as bait. Maybe. It was entirely possible that their captors had meant to keep them, but had also wanted the Keybearers if they could manage to get them. They'd failed, but...
“I see. Did you really think it was smart to let me know that?” He didn't wait for a reply, instead casting Aeroga quickly in the hope of catching the stranger by surprise, as the man was within the range of the defensive variant of the spell. It sort of worked in that the stranger was surprised. However, he was able to evade the spell with an ease that suggested something Roxas didn't really want to consider.
“Of course not. I did think it might be interesting, though.”
“Right. Look, I think if you have any concept of self preservation, you'll leave. Now.”
The only response to that was a laugh. The stranger then held up his hand. For a second, Roxas thought he might be about to cast a spell and began preparing a Reflect spell. However, instead of casting a spell, familiar swirls of white, gray and black energy appeared around his hand and he materialized a weapon in a fashion Roxas had seen far too many times. He wasn't sure what to make of the weapon, though. It looked like a shovel, but it was awfully fancy and appeared to be edged with glass or maybe it was crystal? No, it was definitely glass.
Either way, this didn't look good. Roxas was now up against a Nobody whose element and abilities he knew nothing about and who claimed to want to talk to him about something. Just. Fucking. Lovely. The last time he'd fought against a Higher Nobody, he had been one himself and so had similar abilities (not that he'd quite remembered them at the time...). While having a Heart granted him certain abilities, it denied him others and those others were probably the ones he needed most right now. On the plus side, and it was probably the only plus, he was familiar enough with the common abilities of Nobodies not to be caught off guard too much.
“All right, you want to play that way? Fine.” Holding back was out of the question. Roxas knew that. This Nobody might have been the mastermind behind this scheme or he might have been a puppet. It hardly mattered. If his way of attempting to find an opportunity to talk to Roxas was by capturing him when he tried to rescue some friends, not to mention having helped in kidnapping those friends to start with, well, it wasn't likely he was going to listen to reason.
He gave the Nobody a Firaga to think about and was not surprised when his opponent warped away and reappeared behind him. He was expecting it actually, as he turned, swinging one Keyblade low. The Nobody didn't quite seem to be expecting that, but he countered quickly, catching the Keyblade with his shovel and deflecting it. Roxas followed with the other, forcing the Nobody to leap back.
They only sized each other up for the briefest of moments before exploding into action. The Nobody had the advantage of being able to warp and some floating abilities, but it was becoming apparent that he hadn't been a skilled fighter before losing his Heart. He might be formidable if he decided to train a bit, what with the innate Nobody abilities and all. He also seemed to find Roxas's use of two weapons confounding, if the swearing every time he parried one Keyblade only to be forced back by the second was any indication. The last straw was a lucky swipe opening a lovely little rip in that absurd plaid flannel shirt. Whether it was because the Nobody was that attached to the shirt or because the close call was an eye opener, Roxas couldn't be sure. All he was sure of was that his opponent stepped up his game at that point.
The sudden sand storm wasn't helpful either, especially considering that there wasn't any sand anywhere nearby. Roxas couldn't see his opponent, but he was reasonably certain his opponent could see him. The shovel probably should have been a hint, though that didn't explain the glass edge. The Keybearer cursed under his breath. Lovely. Grumbling a little, he cast Aeroga again, hoping to clear the sand away at least briefly so that he could draw a bead on his opponent. It provided only a brief glimpse, but Roxas went for the opportunity, throwing one Keyblade and charging in behind it bringing the other Keyblade around in a powerful two-handed swing... only to meet a pile of sand hard packed as if it was wet and just solid enough to break his momentum. Swearing more, he dispelled the Keyblades rather than try to pull the stuck one out of the sand pile and recalled them as he turned, looking for the Nobody.
'Sand, shovel... is his element earth?' As likely an answer as that seemed, Roxas would have to let the issue go until later as he was about to learn what else this seemingly inept fighter could do. The sandstorm worsened suddenly and the Nobody came at Roxas from off to his left, shovel raised high and swinging down in an arc that Roxas was not in a good position to block. He dodged to his right, only to be met with a sharp pain in his side. He cast a hasty Aero and lashed out to both sides with his Keyblades, catching his opponent a little more thoroughly this time than just ripping his shirt.
“Ow!” The Nobody backed off to check the wound, leaving Roxas the opportunity to check his own injury.
Imagine his surprise to find a piece of glass in his side, just below the bottom of the ribcage. An inch or two higher and he would've been finding breathing to be very difficult. The only question to ask was: where the fuck did the glass come from? To strike with enough force to cut into him it had to have been propelled somehow. It was too small to for someone to have held it and stabbed him with it, he thought as he pulled it out with a wince, but big enough that it could have kept its momentum if thrown hard enough.
Wait... sand? And glass? Glass was made from sand. This Nobody's element wasn't earth in general, but sand.
'Great. Like my light shields or Marluxia's leaves and flower petals. Fuck...' Swearing inwardly, Roxas turned his attention back to his opponent. Said opponent was still a bit miffed over being wounded, though it was nothing serious. Quietly, Roxas backed off, slinking toward the exit. He could probably win this fight. Hell, it might even be an easy win, but he got the distinct impression that they weren't alone and he doubted that whoever or whatever else was hanging around would be on his side. The Nobody noticed him before he got to the door, though and they mixed it up again, the brief exchange leading Roxas to wonder how much of the Nobody's seeming inability was real and how much was feigned.
Whatever the case was, the Nobody was clearly getting fed up with him. Roxas was in no better a mood himself, though.
“Who the hell are you, anyway?” he snapped, accentuating the point with a particularly aggressive swing of his Keyblades, sending the Nobody into the wreck of an already smashed vase.
“Nobody,” his opponent grunted as he got up.
“Funny. Real funny. I would have said that myself once.” He very seriously considered burying both Keyblades in this Nobody's head. What was said next would give him pause, however.
“That is exactly why I want to talk to you.”
“What? Why would you...?” Not that he even needed to ask. If this Nobody wanted to know how to get his own Heart, Roxas couldn't help him even if he wanted to. His own situation had sort of been a fluke. Specifically, it was a fluke with circumstances that didn't need to be repeated.
“Oh guess,” the Nobody said tersely, “Doesn't every Nobody want his or her Heart back? Or, even, to have their own? That is what I want to discuss with you.”
That... was not comforting. If this Nobody wanted his own Heart and he wanted to know how Roxas had come to get his own, separate from his Other, this could only end badly if Roxas answered his question truthfully.
“It's not an issue that's open for discussion,” Roxas said coldly, shifting his stance. Not could no good come of answering the question, he doubted any good could come of letting this Nobody get away. He had to stop holding back.
“Really? Are you that selfish, Keybearer? Would it really hurt so much to help a Nobody become Somebody again?”
“I don't want to find out the hard way.” And Roxas was moving within the same beat that he finished speaking, Keyblades whirling around to bear down on the Nobody and then swinging back around when his opponent invariably vanished and reappeared behind him. The Nobody swore yet again and kicked up another sandstorm, drawing a few swears from Roxas as well. This was getting nowhere. His opponent could bring the sand back in as soon as an Aero spell faltered and use glass as a projectile.
“Keep this up and the hard way is the only way you're going to find out.” The sandstorm worsened and it was little surprise that there were large pieces of glass flying around among the sand.
Cursing, Roxas cast Aeroga and then, thinking of something he'd seen somewhere that he wanted to try and figuring now was as good a time as any, he added Fire to the spell, creating a fiery tornado and charged at the Nobody. Being based in Aero, the fiery barrier moved with him. Predictably, the plaid flannel wearing Nobody warped away, but he didn't appear behind Roxas this time. Instead, he simply backed off a bit, clearly amused, and waited for the fire and wind to die down. It didn't take long to figure out why. The spell had generated more heat than Roxas had expected it to and had conveniently melted the sand, creating a whirl of molten glass. The Keybearer resisted an urge to use a Blizzard spell to cool it. That could also shatter it and give the Nobody thousands of sharp projectiles to use. If it cooled on its own, hopefully it couldn't be used.
Or maybe it could be used. Before it started to cool, the Nobody began dividing it into sections as easily as one might cut up a piece of fruit. This processed slowed slightly, but noticeably as the glass cooled, but was not halted. This lead Roxas to the uncomfortable situation of being in the middle of a number of hefty, though blunt, projectiles and having nowhere to go. Dodging them meant letting them smash and become the sharper projectiles he didn't need to deal with, but getting hit or deflecting them was no better an option. His best hope was either to hope this Nobody was bad shot with an alert target or to just go straight for him. Neither option was very useful, but Roxas didn't have any other ideas. Well, maybe he did. He started to cast a spell under his breath and made his move at the same time, taking off in a seemingly reckless dash toward his opponent, picking the straightest path he could through the chunks of glass hanging around like fragile meteors. When the Nobody started launching the glass chunks at him he cast Stop, freezing the potential missiles in place and taking a hasty swing at his target.
They locked weapons, but before Roxas could bring the second Keyblade around, something struck him from the side, knocking him over like a blast of very gritty wind. More sand. Lovely. He slid a short way on the floor and came to rest only a foot or so from a pile of rubble. Practically growling, he dodged a hasty swing of the opponent's weapon and came up swinging, catching the weapon again and he was about to bring the other Keyblade down on his opponent's head when his Stop spell gave out. No longer stopped, the glass chunks were back under the Nobody's control and he wasted no time in using them. Two of the missiles slammed into Roxas's unguarded back, knocking the wind from him. A third piece struck his upraised hand in the same instant with an audible crack that was clearly not a sound glass would make and one Keyblade fell, vanishing before it hit the floor. The second Keyblade was a little loose in his hand as he staggered from the surprise attack and he was unable to block a slashing downward swipe of his opponent's weapon, allowing him find out just how sharp that glass edge was. It wasn't a deep wound, for all the ferocity of the swing, but it was obvious that the Nobody had pulled his punch, so to speak, at the last second. Still, a cut across the chest was a cut across the chest and it could easily be torn into a bigger wound. He had to do something.
... Or rather, he would have done something, if the Nobody didn't decide to press his advantage and launch more of the glass chunks at him, pummeling him from all angles. As if to add insult to injury, though, the last blow (at least the last one Roxas would be able to remember later) was not one of the blunt glass chunks. It was the blunt side of the shovel connecting soundly with the side of his head. The second Keyblade fell as he did, only barely touching the floor before it vanished. He was vaguely aware of a third party approaching as consciousness left him...
-----------------------------------
“Was that not a bit much, Koios?”
“No. I think he figured out that I'm not that familiar with my powers yet. If he hadn't underestimated me, we might not be having this discussion.”
“Indeed. It was reckless to approach him alone. Sora may be the stronger of the two, but Roxas is far less forgiving. He is also far less trusting, so I wonder about him underestimating you.”
Koios paused and thought on that for a moment before snickering with his reply, “I was wondering about that too, but you know? It was probably the flannel...”
What: Roxas might be regretting the suggestion to split up and look for others when RG fell...
Where: From around town into the castle's entrance hall
When: The day RG fell, after this thread.
Status: Complete
Note: Long and rambly narrative is long and rambly. Oh and Roxas muse may wish to skin me now.
Splitting up to cover more ground had seemed like a good idea at the time, but the last time Roxas had found himself fighting a large number of Heartless alone there hadn't been any particularly powerful ones in the horde. Now, his search for people needing help getting to the ships to evacuate was running into some serious snags in the form of some of the more powerful common Heartless. Maybe this was a waste. Even if he found anyone, would he be able to provide sufficient cover for them? He doubted it, but he felt he had to try.
However, he didn't seem to be finding anyone at all. Perhaps they had all either made it to the ships or been taken by the Heartless? Whatever the reason, he doubted he could be of any help running around like an idiot searching for people who weren't there to be found. There was also the rather unpleasant thought that a few people he knew had been adamant about staying and trying to stop the world from falling and, now that he thought of it, there was only one place that bunch of idiots might be. Grumbling in frustration, he headed off to the castle. It was risky. They might already be gone from there and he might end up being unable to get to a ship to get off the world. He wasn't too worried about the latter issue. If he was still on the world when it fell, he was probably safe with the Keyblade. Hopefully. If not, he had a damn good reason for taking the risk...
... If he got that far. Just inside the entrance hall, he encountered an unfamiliar face who didn't seem to be overly concerned with the world being consumed by darkness. The dude was scruffy, strawberry blond, roughly six feet in height and seemed mildly amused by what was going on. Roxas guessed the guy to be in his early to mid twenties, though who could be sure? Sometimes people looked younger or older than they really were. Besides his seeming amusement at the situation, the only other clue that the man might just be a villain was a faintly sinister gleam in his gray eyes. Those were the only things. It was kind of hard to see anything sinister in a guy wearing plaid flannel.
“Going somewhere?” he asked, his tone casual, as though there wasn't a world dying around them.
“Not that it's any of your business, but yes,” Roxas replied tersely, “And you ought to be heading for the ships if you want to get off this world before it goes.” There was something so not right with this situation, but Roxas didn't think he really had time to worry about it.
“Really? You... seem to be heading in the wrong direction yourself, Keybearer.”
“I have business in the castle and it's none of yours.” Definitely wrong. Roxas started making small notes of the surroundings. His Keyblades thrummed with energy in a sort of warning. This guy might be looking for a fight. Although, it probably wouldn't be much of a fight. Roxas had a little difficulty believing this guy might be a threat. Seriously? Plaid? Still, a quick glance around would serve well if it came to it. The general destruction in the room meant hazards and possible help. If he did it right, an Aero spell could turn the broken glass lying around into a useful weapon.
“Some friends, maybe?” There was a certain conniving, oily sort of tone that Roxas knew he'd heard somewhere before, even though he knew he didn't know this man. He had heard others speaking in such tones, hinting they knew things they had no intentions of sharing.
“Also none of your business, unless you plan on being a threat to them.” That was probably not the wisest thing to say, but Roxas was touchy about friends, even if he thought they were being incredibly stupid at the moment.
“I don't have any business with your friends. However, I did want to have a word with you.”
“It'll have to wait.” Roxas moved to step by the man, keeping alert for a possible attack. He didn't have time for this. Whatever this idiot was up to, it was not important for the moment, but it was possible he wasn't going to take 'No' for an answer.
It wasn't entirely surprising when he moved to bar Roxas's way.
“I was already denied one chance to speak with you,” the man said, his voice low and holding a mild note of threat, “I'd really rather not wait too much longer.”
“Denied before? When would this have been? Because, you know, I'm pretty sure I don't know you from anywhere.” Roxas had a sneaking suspicion he knew even as the words left his mouth, but he bit back any further comment. It was only a guess, but if he could get this guy to either confirm or deny it without knowing he suspected anything, so much the better.
“You really don't know? Well, we didn't actually see each other then. My associate kind of screwed up, forgetting someone else had left just before you arrived.” The man stuck his hands in his pockets and just stood there, watching Roxas, clearly trying to gauge his response.
Well, that did answer the question a bit more readily than Roxas had expected it to. This guy had been in on the trap in Alexandria. That rankled with Roxas a bit. The Princesses... Kairi. They'd been used as bait. Maybe. It was entirely possible that their captors had meant to keep them, but had also wanted the Keybearers if they could manage to get them. They'd failed, but...
“I see. Did you really think it was smart to let me know that?” He didn't wait for a reply, instead casting Aeroga quickly in the hope of catching the stranger by surprise, as the man was within the range of the defensive variant of the spell. It sort of worked in that the stranger was surprised. However, he was able to evade the spell with an ease that suggested something Roxas didn't really want to consider.
“Of course not. I did think it might be interesting, though.”
“Right. Look, I think if you have any concept of self preservation, you'll leave. Now.”
The only response to that was a laugh. The stranger then held up his hand. For a second, Roxas thought he might be about to cast a spell and began preparing a Reflect spell. However, instead of casting a spell, familiar swirls of white, gray and black energy appeared around his hand and he materialized a weapon in a fashion Roxas had seen far too many times. He wasn't sure what to make of the weapon, though. It looked like a shovel, but it was awfully fancy and appeared to be edged with glass or maybe it was crystal? No, it was definitely glass.
Either way, this didn't look good. Roxas was now up against a Nobody whose element and abilities he knew nothing about and who claimed to want to talk to him about something. Just. Fucking. Lovely. The last time he'd fought against a Higher Nobody, he had been one himself and so had similar abilities (not that he'd quite remembered them at the time...). While having a Heart granted him certain abilities, it denied him others and those others were probably the ones he needed most right now. On the plus side, and it was probably the only plus, he was familiar enough with the common abilities of Nobodies not to be caught off guard too much.
“All right, you want to play that way? Fine.” Holding back was out of the question. Roxas knew that. This Nobody might have been the mastermind behind this scheme or he might have been a puppet. It hardly mattered. If his way of attempting to find an opportunity to talk to Roxas was by capturing him when he tried to rescue some friends, not to mention having helped in kidnapping those friends to start with, well, it wasn't likely he was going to listen to reason.
He gave the Nobody a Firaga to think about and was not surprised when his opponent warped away and reappeared behind him. He was expecting it actually, as he turned, swinging one Keyblade low. The Nobody didn't quite seem to be expecting that, but he countered quickly, catching the Keyblade with his shovel and deflecting it. Roxas followed with the other, forcing the Nobody to leap back.
They only sized each other up for the briefest of moments before exploding into action. The Nobody had the advantage of being able to warp and some floating abilities, but it was becoming apparent that he hadn't been a skilled fighter before losing his Heart. He might be formidable if he decided to train a bit, what with the innate Nobody abilities and all. He also seemed to find Roxas's use of two weapons confounding, if the swearing every time he parried one Keyblade only to be forced back by the second was any indication. The last straw was a lucky swipe opening a lovely little rip in that absurd plaid flannel shirt. Whether it was because the Nobody was that attached to the shirt or because the close call was an eye opener, Roxas couldn't be sure. All he was sure of was that his opponent stepped up his game at that point.
The sudden sand storm wasn't helpful either, especially considering that there wasn't any sand anywhere nearby. Roxas couldn't see his opponent, but he was reasonably certain his opponent could see him. The shovel probably should have been a hint, though that didn't explain the glass edge. The Keybearer cursed under his breath. Lovely. Grumbling a little, he cast Aeroga again, hoping to clear the sand away at least briefly so that he could draw a bead on his opponent. It provided only a brief glimpse, but Roxas went for the opportunity, throwing one Keyblade and charging in behind it bringing the other Keyblade around in a powerful two-handed swing... only to meet a pile of sand hard packed as if it was wet and just solid enough to break his momentum. Swearing more, he dispelled the Keyblades rather than try to pull the stuck one out of the sand pile and recalled them as he turned, looking for the Nobody.
'Sand, shovel... is his element earth?' As likely an answer as that seemed, Roxas would have to let the issue go until later as he was about to learn what else this seemingly inept fighter could do. The sandstorm worsened suddenly and the Nobody came at Roxas from off to his left, shovel raised high and swinging down in an arc that Roxas was not in a good position to block. He dodged to his right, only to be met with a sharp pain in his side. He cast a hasty Aero and lashed out to both sides with his Keyblades, catching his opponent a little more thoroughly this time than just ripping his shirt.
“Ow!” The Nobody backed off to check the wound, leaving Roxas the opportunity to check his own injury.
Imagine his surprise to find a piece of glass in his side, just below the bottom of the ribcage. An inch or two higher and he would've been finding breathing to be very difficult. The only question to ask was: where the fuck did the glass come from? To strike with enough force to cut into him it had to have been propelled somehow. It was too small to for someone to have held it and stabbed him with it, he thought as he pulled it out with a wince, but big enough that it could have kept its momentum if thrown hard enough.
Wait... sand? And glass? Glass was made from sand. This Nobody's element wasn't earth in general, but sand.
'Great. Like my light shields or Marluxia's leaves and flower petals. Fuck...' Swearing inwardly, Roxas turned his attention back to his opponent. Said opponent was still a bit miffed over being wounded, though it was nothing serious. Quietly, Roxas backed off, slinking toward the exit. He could probably win this fight. Hell, it might even be an easy win, but he got the distinct impression that they weren't alone and he doubted that whoever or whatever else was hanging around would be on his side. The Nobody noticed him before he got to the door, though and they mixed it up again, the brief exchange leading Roxas to wonder how much of the Nobody's seeming inability was real and how much was feigned.
Whatever the case was, the Nobody was clearly getting fed up with him. Roxas was in no better a mood himself, though.
“Who the hell are you, anyway?” he snapped, accentuating the point with a particularly aggressive swing of his Keyblades, sending the Nobody into the wreck of an already smashed vase.
“Nobody,” his opponent grunted as he got up.
“Funny. Real funny. I would have said that myself once.” He very seriously considered burying both Keyblades in this Nobody's head. What was said next would give him pause, however.
“That is exactly why I want to talk to you.”
“What? Why would you...?” Not that he even needed to ask. If this Nobody wanted to know how to get his own Heart, Roxas couldn't help him even if he wanted to. His own situation had sort of been a fluke. Specifically, it was a fluke with circumstances that didn't need to be repeated.
“Oh guess,” the Nobody said tersely, “Doesn't every Nobody want his or her Heart back? Or, even, to have their own? That is what I want to discuss with you.”
That... was not comforting. If this Nobody wanted his own Heart and he wanted to know how Roxas had come to get his own, separate from his Other, this could only end badly if Roxas answered his question truthfully.
“It's not an issue that's open for discussion,” Roxas said coldly, shifting his stance. Not could no good come of answering the question, he doubted any good could come of letting this Nobody get away. He had to stop holding back.
“Really? Are you that selfish, Keybearer? Would it really hurt so much to help a Nobody become Somebody again?”
“I don't want to find out the hard way.” And Roxas was moving within the same beat that he finished speaking, Keyblades whirling around to bear down on the Nobody and then swinging back around when his opponent invariably vanished and reappeared behind him. The Nobody swore yet again and kicked up another sandstorm, drawing a few swears from Roxas as well. This was getting nowhere. His opponent could bring the sand back in as soon as an Aero spell faltered and use glass as a projectile.
“Keep this up and the hard way is the only way you're going to find out.” The sandstorm worsened and it was little surprise that there were large pieces of glass flying around among the sand.
Cursing, Roxas cast Aeroga and then, thinking of something he'd seen somewhere that he wanted to try and figuring now was as good a time as any, he added Fire to the spell, creating a fiery tornado and charged at the Nobody. Being based in Aero, the fiery barrier moved with him. Predictably, the plaid flannel wearing Nobody warped away, but he didn't appear behind Roxas this time. Instead, he simply backed off a bit, clearly amused, and waited for the fire and wind to die down. It didn't take long to figure out why. The spell had generated more heat than Roxas had expected it to and had conveniently melted the sand, creating a whirl of molten glass. The Keybearer resisted an urge to use a Blizzard spell to cool it. That could also shatter it and give the Nobody thousands of sharp projectiles to use. If it cooled on its own, hopefully it couldn't be used.
Or maybe it could be used. Before it started to cool, the Nobody began dividing it into sections as easily as one might cut up a piece of fruit. This processed slowed slightly, but noticeably as the glass cooled, but was not halted. This lead Roxas to the uncomfortable situation of being in the middle of a number of hefty, though blunt, projectiles and having nowhere to go. Dodging them meant letting them smash and become the sharper projectiles he didn't need to deal with, but getting hit or deflecting them was no better an option. His best hope was either to hope this Nobody was bad shot with an alert target or to just go straight for him. Neither option was very useful, but Roxas didn't have any other ideas. Well, maybe he did. He started to cast a spell under his breath and made his move at the same time, taking off in a seemingly reckless dash toward his opponent, picking the straightest path he could through the chunks of glass hanging around like fragile meteors. When the Nobody started launching the glass chunks at him he cast Stop, freezing the potential missiles in place and taking a hasty swing at his target.
They locked weapons, but before Roxas could bring the second Keyblade around, something struck him from the side, knocking him over like a blast of very gritty wind. More sand. Lovely. He slid a short way on the floor and came to rest only a foot or so from a pile of rubble. Practically growling, he dodged a hasty swing of the opponent's weapon and came up swinging, catching the weapon again and he was about to bring the other Keyblade down on his opponent's head when his Stop spell gave out. No longer stopped, the glass chunks were back under the Nobody's control and he wasted no time in using them. Two of the missiles slammed into Roxas's unguarded back, knocking the wind from him. A third piece struck his upraised hand in the same instant with an audible crack that was clearly not a sound glass would make and one Keyblade fell, vanishing before it hit the floor. The second Keyblade was a little loose in his hand as he staggered from the surprise attack and he was unable to block a slashing downward swipe of his opponent's weapon, allowing him find out just how sharp that glass edge was. It wasn't a deep wound, for all the ferocity of the swing, but it was obvious that the Nobody had pulled his punch, so to speak, at the last second. Still, a cut across the chest was a cut across the chest and it could easily be torn into a bigger wound. He had to do something.
... Or rather, he would have done something, if the Nobody didn't decide to press his advantage and launch more of the glass chunks at him, pummeling him from all angles. As if to add insult to injury, though, the last blow (at least the last one Roxas would be able to remember later) was not one of the blunt glass chunks. It was the blunt side of the shovel connecting soundly with the side of his head. The second Keyblade fell as he did, only barely touching the floor before it vanished. He was vaguely aware of a third party approaching as consciousness left him...
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“Was that not a bit much, Koios?”
“No. I think he figured out that I'm not that familiar with my powers yet. If he hadn't underestimated me, we might not be having this discussion.”
“Indeed. It was reckless to approach him alone. Sora may be the stronger of the two, but Roxas is far less forgiving. He is also far less trusting, so I wonder about him underestimating you.”
Koios paused and thought on that for a moment before snickering with his reply, “I was wondering about that too, but you know? It was probably the flannel...”