audience - axelea

[cyclists]

Comments

[cyclists]

That really doesn't reassure me, you know. [There's a nod then.] I'm more worried about you guys because I'm not even sure I can die here.

[leaberator]

[ :) leaves that hanging ]

Do me a favor and don't test it?

[cyclists]

Can you promise me the same?

[leaberator]

I'm not planning on it.

[cyclists]

Good. I don't want any of you going through what some of the others have.

[... ] Have you talked to Saix?

[leaberator]

[


Stares up into the sky ]

Not since last night.

[cyclists]

He was being...unusually upfront about stuff. I was just wondering.

[leaberator]

[ internally screaming ]

... Yeah, no kidding. [ wait ] Wait, what'd he tell you?

[cyclists]

A lot more than I ever thought I'd hear, and stuff that I'm wondering why you never told us.

[leaberator]

[ ......ah, ]

Like... what?

[cyclists]

Just stuff about the two of you and when you guys were human.

[That's vague, but sure.]

[leaberator]

[ giiiiiiiiii ]

I dunno. There wasn't exactly a lot to say about it.

[cyclists]

That girl...?

[leaberator]

[ ... ah. he wasn't kidding about saix sharing, huh. ]

What was there to say? We never found her.

[cyclists]

Who was she? Saix said Xehanort's Heartless was using her, but he didn't really go into a ton of detail.

["Why were you trying to save her?"]

[leaberator]

[ it's... weird, to talk about her. he's never done it with anyone except isa. axel looks awkward. ]

... I don't know. She couldn't remember her own name. And everything was so dark down there, we never saw her properly. [ he hasn't looked at roxas this whole time, and he's not about to start now ] I don't even know if I could recognize her if I saw her.

[ it's idle, but when he says it, he wipes under his eyes, reflexively. there are no tears. ]

The original members of the Organization-- I through VI-- were apprenticed under Ansem the Wise. And... they did human experiments on the people of Radiant Garden. She was one of 'em. That's what he meant by saying Xehanort was using her.

[cyclists]

He called her a lab rat. [So yeah, that lines up with what he thought and what Saix said. Axel's not looking at him but Roxas continues to stare anyway, working this out slowly.]

...but why? That's what I never understood even though...that research is probably what brought me and Xion back. But if someone else got hurt by it in the first place...[That's bad.]

[leaberator]

[ wow the morality of human experiments is. not where he thought this convo was going ]

A lot of people got hurt by it back then. DiZ-- Ansem the Wise, whatever-- is the one who agreed to start. I think they brought you guys back to... I don't know. Try and start making up for stuff.

[cyclists]

Atonement. [Well that's. Stupid.]

...I don't know what to say to that.

[leaberator]

... You, Naminé and Xion were people they were directly responsible for who they could help. For most of the stuff they did, the solution isn't as simple. I think that was part of it.

[ he can't relate he didn't send all of radiant garden to its fucking doom. ]

[cyclists]

Yeah. Probably. [There's a pause because yeah, this conversation got deep and he doesn't entirely feel qualified to talk about it right now.]

...I didn't tell him he wasn't dying because he seemed like he'd be more talkative that way. [Let's dunk on Saix some more.] But I told him most of the future.

[leaberator]

[ ... he starts to laugh, low ]

Man. Maybe I am a bad influence. [ he doesn't expand on that. ] What did you tell him?

[cyclists]

Just that his plan had worked to bring me back and that we all got hearts in the end. He sort of figured out how that happened on his own. But I didn't tell him anything else.

[leaberator]

Prolly good for him to hear that.

[ that's all he says on that, though. ]

[cyclists]

You think? It seemed to make him happy which was a little weird...but I hope it helped enough.