Shadows and Flames (Axel)

[Axel]

Lea let the white cloak disappear, knowing full well that he had caught the nobody's attention. It was nice to know that he somehow was more intelligent than Axel, though they shared the same mind. The thought of Axel reminded Lea that he was kicking and screaming in the back of his head. The man would remember all that was said, as if it was dream like, so Lea had no problem leading Zexion to the struggle tournament. In truth Lea was getting tired of being a 'thing'. He'd rather go back to his flame like self, relinquishing the reigns of this body back to the original owner. Lea wanted to burn Zexion's body, to encompass each inch of the brat’s skin in boils and burns. He knew Axel wouldn't kill the kid, but it was a nice enough thought. Death was all that he ever thought about really, that is when the beast gave him the ability to think. It was strange how he could recall the 'memories' and 'feelings' from each thing he has burnt. Hell he could remember the pain and frustration, the shock and fear seeping from Vexen as the flames licked at him.

"I'm guessing gym wasn't your forte?'

Lea laughed, knowing full well that Zexion would probably dig at him for asking such a question, or pull out some snide remark. Zexion was always like that, from what Lea could steal from Axel's memories. It was odd how they seemed to be his as well, as if he had lived them...

Axel blinked for a second, feeling his hair begin to rise. His hand covered his face, suddenly being blinded from the sunlight. It felt like years since he had been in the forest, it felt like...

Lea wrestled control back from Axel, pushing the persona back down to the depths of the mind. That was close, though Lea was amazed that he had lasted in control for this long. All he had to do was drag Zexion to the tournament and all would be well. His hair started to drop again, though it hadn't raised much, nor was there enough time for the colour to change, so it just looked like the wind had blown through.

"How do people survive little pup? Sure using their intellect is one thing, but what do they always resort to, in those life and death situations?"

Lea expected a long winded, philosophical answer from Zexion. It wasn't what he was wanting, not because he wouldn't understand, but because it deviated from the point. Lea was a straight to the point sort of person. He had nothing to hide, nor would anything shock him, why should it? Axel was the persona that had to play these political games, not him. The entrance to the forest was coming into view, and with it the sound of cheers and cries for the Struggle Tournament. Lea looked back over his shoulder, smiling to Zexion, but also noticing the heartless scurrying behind them. His smile grew into a devilish grin and he allowed small fragments of darkness to part from his hands. They lay on the grass, causing the heartless to be enticed and excited. This gave Lea an idea, one that took a page from Hansel and Gretel's book.

"Ready to get your ass kicked little pup?"

Lea chuckled as he walked through the gateway and towards the Struggle Ring.

[Zexion]

The lab coat disappeared and Zexion still followed, he wanted to study Axel and the sudden change in him and also he wanted to know how the other got that. No one should have anything of Ienzo’s; even Zexion had only managed to keep the locket he had always worn when he was a child. So how had Axel gotten some he had worn every day, had he found it when he was Axel or had Lea found it he assumed that people would have gone to the castle to see what had happened? However Zexion was never one to just assume something and go with it, he always had to know the exact truth the exact reason for everything it was the scientist in him. He had never had this much interaction with Axel before, anytime they had been in the same room together had been short and sweet unless they had been in a meeting. Zexion however had come to his own conclusion a few minutes ago and he was sure it was right; Axel wanted a fight perhaps he hadn't come looking for one but he sure seemed bent on getting Zexion to follow him. Axel was luring Zexion to a place of his choosing, it was simple and easy to see but yet he followed because he wanted to know just what was going on.

"You would be correct, everyone has a weakness Axel some just find means around their own" he spoke as if this was all normal for him, so calm and collection no matter the situation. The only real time Zexion had ever panic and shown it had been in castle oblivion, and the reason behind that was the very man walking in front of him now. Axel had taken away his chance to serve the organization further, taken away his chance to be there when he regained their hearts. Although judging by the fact all the members he had met remained heartless, it was a known fact they had not succeeded. He silently watched the other walk, taking note of the way he walked and the way certain parts of his body would move there was still something off about Axel had something changed inside him.

"People resort to their basic instincts, flee or fight really they can either flee and know they will live or they can stay and fight and most likely die. The choice is theirs really why it is best to not get into those situations". One of the reasons Zexion disliked battle was because of that, those moments when something could go wrong and you had to choice to risk staying or flee and neither of those options always worked out like they should. As the forest started to fade away and the city came into site, it struck Zexion just where Axel was taking him to. The struggle tournament, of all places that was where Axel wanted him in the midst of people all cheering for them to wack each other with rubber weapons.

Zexion smirked when the other looked over at him, if that was the way he wanted to play it then this was the way they would play it. "You miss judge me Axel, looks can be deceiving or have you forgotten how easily you changed the moment you saw Roxas" and just like that Zexion walked past the other, and right towards the struggle tournament. He always knew sooner or later that he might have to play this game; sometimes the only way to study why people enjoyed something so much was to get involved with it.

[Axel]

Calamities Nobody

Lea smiled as he watched Zexion walking past, straight into the roar of approval from the surrounding crowd. People were laughing cheering, whooping, brandishing balloon batons, and oversized drinks. The atmosphere of the tournament has clearly gone up a notch since Axel had left all that time ago. In front of them, a Struggle battle was happening, two combatants were spinning flipping, running and lunging at each other. It had seemed as if some sort of frenzy had gripped the pair for they weren't truly thinking about forms or combat. Nor did they care for the coloured balls they had to get; instead their eyes were focused on each other. Teeth bared like wild animals, their muscles tensing and relaxing, working in perfect harmony. Sweat was dripping from their bodies, roars ripping form their lungs. It was a far different tournament than what Axel had walked out of, and from what Zexion would have expected. Lea picked up his pace walking past Zexion, no doubt trying to not look astonished at the...primal way the crowd and combatants were acting. He spun around, his hands making a grand flourish as he pointed to himself.

"I never changed little pup, Roxas provided me with the chance to embrace what was already there"

He grinned something demonic as he spun back to the fighting and clapped his hands high above his head. The audience began to pick it up, though less composed. They were clapping drumming, stomping, doing everything to follow Lea's basic beat. They shouted and screamed, calling for the fight to end, for someone to be proclaimed the winner. The thunderous sound of the people egged the two fighters on, making for more risky swipes and manoeuvres. For one, he thought himself smart by trying to feint. However it was clear the fool had rarely done such a move and was quickly taken to the floor with a swipe of the baton. The loser hit his head on the concrete floor, causing blood to spill. The warm liquid seemed to unnaturally move itself towards Lea, as if begging for it to be lapped up by his tongue. He just smiled, and kept clapping, faster and faster, causing the audience to pick the pace up as well. The winner stood proud, and looked down on its enemy with contempt. The people wanted a swift judgement, something to really fill their thirst. Turning the baton, the winner held the wooden pommel above as if it was holy weapon, and then brought it down on the cowering man.

Each fall of the pommel brought on more cries, more laughs. Lea slowly walked up, and grabbed the man's arm, stopping him from doing any further damage. Lifting his arm high, he roared to the crowd, as if its presenter and king.

"WE HAVE A WINNNER"

His voice seemed to be full of power, full of passion, probably something Zexion would not have thought possible from a nobody. The crowd roared its approval in a most instinctual form. All of them ignored the still body laying on the ground, its blood being drawn towards Lea like a moth to a flame. Smiling he motioned for the winner to remove the body, and then turned to address the audience.

"People of Twilight Town, DO YOU WANT MORE?"

The crowd roared its approval; the sound coming from their lips seemed to have lost all form of higher thought.

"THEN WATCH, as I do battle with an old friend of mine, ZEXION THE CLOAKED SCHEMER"

It was as if they knew who Zexion was, for they bellowed their approval and distaste for the man at the same time. Respecting his power, yet hating what he was. Laughing Lea stepped towards a stand that held a number of Struggle weapons. All based of real ones, with different lengths and sizes.

"Now let’s see how you overcome your weaknesses Zexion"

Lea's jade eyes seemed to flicker slightly, as if something was stirring within, something more than just plain wild fire.

[Zexion]

Bright blue eyes landed on the stage, if that was what you could call it. Two people currently were engaging in a struggle match, now Zexion had never seen a match up close only ever heard about them. What he saw was much more barbaric then he had ever heard, the two youths currently swung their weapons around savagely as they both made quick movements to dodge each other’s attacks. The cheering crowd seemed too focused on the fight that everything else went unnoticed; they were hypnotized by this idiotic display of power. As Axel walked past him, Zexion continued to study the players and the crowd some more he in some way he found this interesting. Axel's voice rang clear over the crowd, drawing the smaller nobody’s attention to him.

"So it appears Number Thirteen had more uses then he first appeared to, how interesting" He turned back to face the stage again, barbaric displays of strength and animalistic way of fighting was more interesting than anything Axel had to say at the moment. He had forgotten just how barbaric people with hearts could be, resorting to basic instincts the moment anything involving violence came into their life. As his companion began to clap louder and faster, everyone in the audience seemed to be able to pick up it trying to outdo him. Each person was trying to be louder than the last, stamping their feet, clapping their hands and screaming out for more. The battle heated up as the crowd put more energy and heart into their cheers, the energy they put into the air seemed to fuel the fighters. Suddenly one of the fighters suffered a blow knocking him to the ground, the soft cracking sound could not be heard but it made its self-known.

Warm blood started to ooze from his skill; it tainted the ground beneath him. His opponent and the winner however did not seem pleased enough; he continued to beat the other teen with the wooden end of his struggle bat. The crowd still cheered, it was at that moment that Zexion knew something was not right. He may had never played struggle or seen it live until now, but Vexen had been the first to scout this town and he had told Zexion all about the childish game played with foam covered bats. This was nothing like what he had been told; his eyes glanced at Axel as he took the stage screaming out to the crowd. Then he was introduced to them as Axel's opponent, they cheered for him they booed at him the crowd was filled with all sorts of cheers and sneers.

Zexion found it rather annoying and stupid, so as he walked up the small stair case onto the stage he raised his right hand in line with his left shoulder then brought it down in a sweeping motion across to his right hip. The battle stage became engulfed in an illusions, one were the sound of the cheering crowds voice could not reach. The stage was silent as Zexion walked over the weapon rack, black gloved fingers wrapped around the handle of a medium sized struggle bat. The slate haired nobody turned on his heels, giving the struggle bat a few practice swipes it reminded him of the time he had fought Riku and used his own weapon against him.

"I do hope you can perform without the cheers of those idiots" he cast his glance towards the crowd before he took his spot on the stage, the struggle bat in front of him ready to play the game.

[Axel]

Lea smiled as he watched the illusions surround the small battle arena, removing all sound from the outside. An eerie silence hung in the air as Lea took in the sites before him. His beloved people were screaming, shouting, unable to find the master that had driven to such lengths of insanity. Lea brushed his hair back as he slowly walked towards the struggle stand, pulling a Styrofoam bat for himself. He swung about his hand, pulling of parlour tricks that seemed natural. He had never done them, but Lea had finally gotten used to the fact that this was Axel's body. All he had learned, was being shared with Lea, and that included his tricks. Like a child gleefully watching a clown, Lea watched as the bat spun about his arm, over his head and around his person. It was a fantastic sight to see, the bat moving as if it had a life of its own, but gracefully guided by Lea's hand.

"Isn't this fun"

Lea chuckled to Zexion as his eyes focused still on the bat. Only for them to be torn away suddenly, when he remembered why he was holding it. He took one last glance at the havoc happening around them. The people had gone into some sort of daze, watching the area where their 'master' had been, waiting for some sign of life. It made Lea feel all warm inside, like as if they were his valuable pets.

"I can fight without them, but it's a crying shame that you can't. My puppies would have loved to hear my jokes."

He cupped his ear to his hand, and comically leaned out to try and hear the audience. He frowned like a child as his eyes stared directly into Zexion's.

"Can't you hear their whimpering? It's crushing my heart!"

He gripped his chest melodramatically, and slowly walked towards Zexion. With his eyes still on Zexion, Lea stomped the ground, causing a flurry of coloured orbs to fly high into the air. Lea couldn't count how many there were, but they shined in the late afternoon night like stars. Each reflected the light, causing the floor to be an ocean of shades and hues. Lea desperately wanted to look around, to run amongst the colours like a child. But he fought the urges and readied himself for when the balls began to fall.

"You ready to play, little pup?"

His voice contained so much glee, that he couldn't keep a serious face any longer. A massive grin stretched from ear to ear, as Lea pulled off his cloak and threw it at Zexion, hoping to block his view as he leaped towards the balls.

[Zexion]

Zexion gave a few more careful swings of the struggle bat; he wasn't use to using a weapon that required a lot of close combat. Sure he had once copied Riku's own weapon against him, however he always had his true weapon to fall back on. Struggle matches had rules and regulations that prevented anything other than the issued bats being used; even in the current situation such things did need to be upheld. World order was still required, even if so many worlds had become twisted together who was to say that if the worlds did manage to return to their own dimensions that anything they did here wouldn't affect them later on.

"Fun is the furthest thing from my mind right now Axel"

The cloaked schemer cast his own eyes over at the crowd; the way they watched on the edge of their seats was slightly creepy. Almost as if they thought the simple task of blinking would cause them to miss something, as if something life changing could happening during one of these matches. At least he knew once he regained his heart, he would not waste his days doing such pointless things like all the people here were.

"I am sure they can live a few moments without hearing your voice, unless you gain some sort of pleasure from hearing them"

A small smirk played on his lips; he would always enjoy a battle of wits more than any physical battle. A sudden presence made its self-known inside the mind of Zexion, a presence that only Zexion could feel and hear. "Hehehe how interesting, Zexion your old friend here what is his name" Zalera's voice to most would be bone chilling; however the slate haired nobody was use to his new companion. "Axel, he is number Eight of the Organization XIII" Zexion kept his focus on the other; he could not be caught off guard. "Are you sure that is his name, if you feel the need to call me during this match do not hesitate meeting old friends can sometimes be a pleasure" and just like that Zalera was gone from Zexion's mind.

"Please do I grow tired of waiting around"

Zexion was not amused by the tactics the other employed, throwing his cloak at Zexion was both immature and showed a sign of a sore loser. Using the struggle bat Zexion struck the cloak to the side, he cared not where it fell or even if it landed out of the arena. He however did not rush to pick up any orbs, instead he walked calmly collecting any orbs he came across all the while keeping a distance from the other.

[Axel]

Lea couldn't hide his amusement as he darted around the stage, collecting as many balls as he could. Laughter was the only thing that came from his mouth, whole and hearty. Each ball was one closer to winning; each coloured light seemed to hit all five of his senses. His movements were swift and fluid, to the point where it was hard to tell where one swipe started and the other ended. He flipped and jumped, leaped and bounded, no amount of words could describe what was running through Lea's mind at that moment. However in-between his moments of glee, there was always a second of it being spoilt, before his attention was diverted once more. Each time he faced Zexion, he wasn't enjoying himself, nor was he even trying to play the game. As Lea's eyes fell on the young nobody, he couldn't find a trace of enthusiasm. Slowing his movements, Lea halted to a stop, staring at Zexion. Gripping his struggle bat tightly, it looked as if Lea was about to have a tantrum, restraining the anger in his voice.

"Hey...”

As the word parted from his lips, Axel felt tired for a second, as if he had been running for eternity. He hadn't noticed his hair returning to its usual form, nor the fact that he was standing in the midst of a struggle battle. Looking bemused, he quickly noticed who his opponent was, and a fierce grin spread across his face.

".. it seems you gave into my pawning eh Zexion?!"

Axel ignored the momentary fatigue that had randomly plagued him, and focused on collecting the coloured balls, though making his way closer to Zexion with each step. It was fun to say the least, but Axel had always wondered if he could beat the nobody without stabbing him in the back. Jumping to catch some balls high in the air, Axel landed it with rolling into a sprint.

"You look like your almost enjoying yourself kid!"

He laughed as he dropped to the floor, letting his momentum slide him to Zexion. His baton quickly span in his fingers to be reversed as he aimed to slash at the illusionist's legs.



[sorry for crap post, muse was low >.<]

[Zexion]

Bright blue eyes watched the other run around, it was like watching a child a child who had too much energy than their body could handle. Zexion however simply walked around the small arena, collecting as many orbs as he came in contact with always making sure to never get too close to the flaming red head. Fingers kept a tight grip on the struggle bat in his hand; there was no time for mistakes even in a simply game like this for you could never tell what Axel was thinking. When Axel's movements slowed down, so did the slate haired nobodies. Zexion locked eyes with the other; his own bright blue eyes gave off a look of boredom as if this whole thing was just a waste of his time.

"Something wrong number Eight?"

He was slightly amused with the others reaction, to think the other thought he would take this children’s game seriously. Zexion observed the sudden change in the other, for a moment it had looked like he was lost however that was quickly replaced with a grin when the other noticed him. What Axel had said was slightly odd, Axel had been the one who lured him here with Ienzo's white lab coat now he was acting like he had no idea how they ended up here.

"Does your memory fail you Axel? Or can you honestly say you do not recall how you lured me here"

Something was off about the whole situation; the flaming red head had forgotten how they even ended up in the ring. Zexion knew that once this little game was over, he would find himself back in the library trying to figure out the odd behaviour of his old companion. Said companion was back to his old ways, running around collecting those coloured balls like they were life its self.

"I'm simply enthralled"

His voice was nothing but sarcastic, honestly how could anyone enjoy something like this. His opponent moved fast, the struggle bat connected with his legs pulling them out from under him. Zexion hit the ground his free arm protecting his face, which he then used to push up and back on his feet. He spun on his heels bringing his own bat down in a slashing motion, that single battle with Riku would come in handy here. Once his own attack was over Zexion jumped back from the other, he hated close combat and Axel was one who preferred to get close and personal.

{OOC: Sorry if it's not a lot to work with, my muse has been fickle}